Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons

The journey to seek immortality is hard but full of novelty.

Whenever they arrived at a famous mountain or river, Wen Jiao would always order the servants to wait nearby, and she would take Huo Ling'er into the mountains to look for hermits and visit Taoist temples. The servants were worried at first and insisted on following them, but a few were knocked down by Wen Jiao, and a few were knocked over by Huo Ling'er who changed back to her original form, so they no longer objected to her arrangements.

In this way, she also met several Taoists who practiced Taoism and devout seekers, and they taught Wen Jiao many tricks of refining qi, practical spells and small magic. However, when it comes to seeking immortality, it is still as elusive as the flowers in the mirror and the moon in the water.

Huo Ling'er was used to wandering, and although she could not live as comfortably as she did in the mansion, the chef accompanying Wen Jiao had excellent cooking skills, and the dishes made with local ingredients could satisfy her appetite. Moreover, she could transform back to her original form every night, and could return to her makeup box to accompany her beloved Ruyi Pearl, so she had no complaints even if she accompanied Wen Jiao through mountains and rivers, and instead looked energetic because she could breathe the fresh air in the mountains from time to time.

After walking and stopping for a while, they arrived at the border of Shangyong County. It was noon, the sun was very scorching, and the people who were traveling with them wore hats, and their necks and backs of their hands were all sunburned red. Huo Ling'er had a crystal body, and the sun couldn't do anything to her, she was still lively and energetic. Wen Jiao had the Ruyi Pearl to bathe her body with spiritual energy, which was also cool and sweat-free.

Among the servants was Jia Quan, the most capable of the entourage. He was the leader of the group. Seeing this, he rode up and said, "Miss, there is a teahouse in front. Let's go and enjoy the cool air. The animals also need to rest."

Wen Jiao always respected the opinions of professionals. She looked around and saw that her own Black Dragon Horse was still energetic, but a little tired. The horses of the others were licking their lips, obviously thirsty. She smiled and said, "We need to take a break."

The group rushed to the teahouse and dismounted. Jia Quan was the first to call out, "Tea Master, make four pots of your fine tea. Don't put anything else in the pot on our table except tea leaves."

Wen Jiao was not used to the Tang people's tea with added ingredients. Over the past few days, Jia Quan had figured out her habits and naturally had to give her some advice early on.

The tea master from the teahouse came up to us and asked in surprise, "You don't even add salt?"

"No." Jia Quan said. As he spoke, the fourteen people in the group had already sat down, occupying four full tables. "What refreshments do you have? One portion of each for each table. Do you have cold water and hay? Feed our animals and I'll pay you more for tea later."

"Okay!" The tea master replied. Soon, each table brought a large copper kettle of tea, and the tea fragrance filled the air. He also brought a few plates of rice dumplings, and said to Wen Jiao, "There are not many delicious snacks in this small place, only the rice dumplings we made at home, please don't despise them, dear guest."

"It's good to have zongzi, it's filling." Wen Jiao said with a smile. Although she also likes delicious food, she is not squeamish when it comes to making do.

Everyone was obviously very tired. They ate all the rice dumplings and drank all the tea. Wen Jiao saw this and ordered another big pot of tea for each table. She also gave the tea master some money and asked him to go to the nearby Er Hun Shop to buy some meat and vegetable cooked food and noodles. She said to everyone, "We've already eaten some, so let's just make a quick meal. When we get to the inn in the evening, we can borrow their kitchen and ask the two brothers to show their cooking skills so that everyone can have a good meal."

The two brothers she was talking about were Aunt Shen's two sons, Li Erlang and Li Sanlang. They had been following their mother since they were young, cutting vegetables and making fire, and had learned good cooking skills. They were also young and strong and could withstand long journeys, so they were chosen by Madam Yin to follow Wen Jiao.

The cooked food was bought and they ate it all in one go. After drinking several bowls of tea, they sweated and felt refreshed. At this time, there were no other customers in the teahouse except for the four tables, so the tea masters also sat down in groups of three or four to enjoy the cool air.

Li Sanlang was always talkative. As soon as he recovered, he couldn't help but chat with someone. He fanned himself with his bamboo hat and said to the young tea doctor who was closest to him, "I heard that the summer in your south is hot and stuffy since I was a child. I thought it was a big deal. But this time, it's even drier than our north. The scorching sun is like a knife piercing my neck."

The tea master sighed, "That's right. If you had come here at this time last year, the wind blowing on your face would have been wet. But this year is different. It hasn't rained for two months. This summer is even hotter than in previous years. The river is almost dry. Fortunately, there are many mountain springs, so people won't die of thirst for a while, but if it goes on like this, we can't stand it. Take our teahouse for example. All the waiters have to run to the springs far away in the mountains to fetch water before dawn every day. The price of tea has increased fivefold in the past two months. Customers from nearby think it's too expensive and don't come anymore."

As he was talking, he heard a commotion outside, and many people walked away following the sound of the gongs clearing the road. The tea doctor then sighed, "That's the county magistrate of Shangyong County. He is going to the nearby mountains to pray for rain. This is the third time this month. God never rains, and he is worried."

Wen Jiao had never seen anyone praying for rain, so she was very curious and asked everyone to rest while she went to watch. Huo Linger liked to watch the fun, so she followed. Soon, Jia Quan also caught up with the two servants with the best boxing skills.

The four of them squeezed into the crowd and went up the mountain together. From afar, they saw the yamen runners setting up an incense table and placing a pig's head and three other animals. The county magistrate picked up the sacrificial text and read aloud: "On May 19th, the first year of the Zhenguan period of the Tang Dynasty, the Shangyong County Magistrate respectfully offered a simple drink and a variety of delicacies to the Five Dragon Gods..."

The onlookers were completely silent. For a moment, apart from the sound of the county magistrate reading the sacrificial text, the only sound was the rustling of the mountain wind. The trees and flowers in the mountains swayed with it. Although they were still lush and green, their leaves were scorched and looked dry.

If there could be a heavy rain, the current drought could be cured. But if the drought continued, the consequences would be disastrous. Wen Jiao could feel the anxiety and solemnity of the people in Shangyong County.

"Tsk!" A disdainful laugh came from behind. Wen Jiao turned her head and saw that the person who was laughing was an old man with white hair and beard, leaning on a long quinoa stick, standing at the edge of the crowd. She got out of the crowd and asked, "Why are you laughing, old man?"

The old man said with a straight face, "I am laughing at the county magistrate for being so tactless. He is so anxious to pray for rain, but he doesn't even offer something good. He only offers a greasy pig head and three animals. Even the Dragon King would not like them. The Dragon King is already upset. If he doesn't give him something he likes, how can he have the energy to make the clouds and rain?"

When Wen Jiao heard this, she felt that he had a reason for saying this: "Why is Lord Dragon upset, and why does he need a treasure that he likes?"

The old man said listlessly, "Every family has its own problems. The Dragon King is henpecked. Last month, when he was drinking tea, he said something to the clam girl who poured the tea. The Dragon King's wife saw it and scratched his face. He even went back to his parents' home in anger. The Dragon King is anxious to coax her back, so how can he have time to worry about making rain?"

Wen Jiao was stunned for a moment.