Chapter 616
The Bodhisattva definitely has a way!
But this axe that split the heavens did it, effortlessly, as if mocking his arrogance.
He extended his fingertip and flicked it lightly. The drop of blood transformed into a golden-red stream of light, which exploded with a bang, turning into a rain of blood that was then swallowed up by the chaotic aura in an instant and vanished without a trace.
The pain didn't last long, and it didn't even leave a scar.
The Great Resurrection spell operated silently, and the wound had already healed completely, as if it had never existed.
But Jiang Wang felt a sense of peace he had never felt before because of this.
It has offense, defense, and resurrection.
He finally had the confidence to walk boldly through the primordial world.
He slowly stood up, holding the Heaven-Opening Axe in his hand. The axe trembled slightly and emitted a deep hum, as if responding to his wishes.
At that moment, he almost couldn't help but roar to the sky, to tell this vast wilderness that he, Jiang Wang, was no longer a pawn who could only hide in the shadows and scheme.
He wanted to go back.
He longs to return to that alien world he once abandoned, to wield this heaven-cleaving axe, and to stand tall before those who were once high and mighty, to show them who truly reigns supreme.
But as soon as the thought crossed his mind, he laughed.
His laughter was tinged with self-deprecation and helplessness.
The ancestor of the Xuanhuang Realm Dragon Clan...
That being whose very mention caused even the venerable Hongjun to change color slightly, that terrifying monster whose mere thought could cause the rise and fall of the three thousand great worlds, that true primordial ruler whom even he, in his prime, had to give way to…
If he goes back, will the Dragon Ancestor let him live for more than three breaths?
The answer is self-evident.
Jiang Wang slowly concealed his aura, and the Heaven-Opening Axe transformed into a stream of light that entered his brow.
He sat down cross-legged, and the chaotic aura around him surged in again, enveloping him like a solitary peak standing in the boundless darkness.
"The Journey to the West... will have to be delayed any longer."
He murmured softly, his voice fading into the void, unheard by anyone.
He suddenly felt a little doubtful about Tang Sanzang's unwavering devotion to Taoism.
What kind of person was he?
Even though they had already fallen into the mortal world and had already been moved by worldly desires, they were still able to hold onto that faint sliver of clarity in the most dangerous moment.
Jiang Wang shook his head and stopped thinking about it.
The primordial world was so vast that even his current strength was but a speck of dust within it.
He still has time.
A lot of time.
The glazed tiles gleamed coldly in the moonlight, and the palace lanterns swayed, casting flickering shadows of people inside the hall.
The curve was already quite obvious, like a nearly full moon, heavily resting on his originally slender waist.
He gently traced the bulge with his fingertips, his movements so light as if he were afraid of disturbing something.
It's been two months.
He took the so-called abortion pills every day. As the bitter medicine slid down his throat, he could almost hear his heart beating, one beat after another, as if it were counting down.
But the demonic fetus in his womb seemed to be mocking his futile efforts, remaining motionless and even becoming more active.
He finally realized that he had been deceived.
That high and mighty queen never intended for him to leave in the first place.
Tang Sanzang slowly closed his eyes, his eyelashes casting a faint shadow beneath them.
He wanted to die.
This thought had been swirling in my mind for two whole months. From initial shock and anger to numbness, and now, a sense of almost liberating calm has arisen.
So be it, let him die.
At worst, he'd end it all, return to the underworld, and accept the eighteen levels of hell. It's better than living like this, neither monk nor layman, neither human nor demon.
Just as he was about to bite his tongue off, the palace door was gently pushed open.
The Queen, dressed in a deep purple palace gown, walked in with graceful steps, carrying a bowl of freshly brewed medicine in her hand. The steaming heat obscured half of her face.
"Master, what are you thinking about now?"
Her voice was so gentle it was almost dripping with tenderness.
Tang Sanzang opened his eyes, his gaze calmly falling on her face, without anger or sadness, only a deathly stillness.
"This humble monk wishes to die."
The four words, light and airy, were like a feather falling on a lake, yet they caused the Queen's fingertips to tremble, and the bowl of medicine almost spilled.
She quickly composed herself, approached him with a deeper smile, and personally handed him the bowl of medicine.
"Why do you say that, Master? The child in your womb also has a spirit. What will happen to him if you die?"
Tang Sanzang did not take the medicine, but looked at her and said, word by word, "It's been two months, and the medicine is ineffective. Queen, you have lied to me."
The Queen's smile froze for a moment.
Suddenly, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the hall. An old imperial physician, escorted by guards, stumbled in and knelt down with a thud, tears streaming down his face.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me! I...I deserve to die!"
The Queen put down the medicine bowl and turned around; the tenderness in her eyes instantly turned into a sharp frost.
"Damn it? Then die."
She raised her hand, and a purple-gold light condensed at her fingertips, about to fall.
"Wait a minute!"
Tang Sanzang suddenly spoke, his voice not loud, but it made the beam of light stop in mid-air.
He leaned on the edge of the couch and struggled to his feet, his abdomen, visible beneath his monk's robe, becoming even more conspicuous, like an ironic joke.
"Let him finish speaking. I want to hear what he has fed this poor monk these past two months."
The old imperial physician trembled violently, his forehead slamming heavily against the cold ground, his voice so hoarse it was almost inaudible.
"Reporting to the Holy Monk, the abortion medicine... requires ten-thousand-year-old musk as the main ingredient in order to... in order to abort the demonic fetus."
But the ancient musk has been extinct for thousands of years. I...I had no choice but to use the musk of the three-hundred-year-old spirit musk as a substitute...so...so that's why..."
Before she could finish speaking, the Queen's face had turned extremely grim.
Tang Sanzang, however, was like a drowning man suddenly grasping at a straw; a faint light suddenly shone in his previously lifeless eyes.
"Ten-thousand-year-old musk...is there any left?"
The old imperial physician looked up tremblingly, his voice trembling with sobs: "There are...there are rumors that in the far north of the Eastern Continent, someone once saw a ten-thousand-year-old snow musk deer...but...but now the immortals have withered away, and that place has long since become ruins..."
Tang Sanzang took a deep breath, clasped his hands together, and spoke in a voice as soft as a sigh, yet with unwavering determination.
"Goku."
Outside the hall, a golden light flashed, and Sun Wukong somersaulted and landed inside. He slammed his golden cudgel on the ground, causing the hall bricks to crack inch by inch.
"Master calls me Old Sun?"
Tang Sanzang looked at him, his gaze piercing through the layers of palace lanterns and landing on the monkey's fiery eyes.
"I... still have a glimmer of hope."
He paused, his voice lowered, yet it still reached everyone's ears clearly.
"I'd like to trouble you to go to the Eastern Continent and find that ten-thousand-year-old musk." Sun Wukong scratched his cheek, his fiery eyes darting between the Queen and Tang Sanzang, and chuckled twice.
"Master, this woman is clearly stalling for time!"
Upon hearing this, the Queen's expression changed slightly, but she quickly concealed it and said softly, "Great Sage, you misunderstand. How could I dare to tease the Holy Monk? It's just that this ten-thousand-year-old musk has never been found in the past thousand years. If you can find it for the Holy Monk, I will be willing to give you the whole kingdom in gratitude."
Sun Wukong snorted coldly, but said nothing more, only looking at Tang Sanzang.
Tang Sanzang nodded slightly.
"Go, Wukong."
"I'll wait for you, your teacher."
The monkey gave him a deep look, the obvious curve of its belly making his eyes burn, but he said nothing in the end. He simply somersaulted out of the Western Liang Women's Kingdom and headed straight for the Eastern Sheng Divine Continent.
For him, 108,000 li was nothing more than a blink of an eye.
But when he landed in the far north of Dongsheng Shenzhou, he was stunned.
Everywhere you look, there is scorched earth, collapsed sacred mountains, and severed spiritual veins. The once blessed land of jade palaces and celestial music is now nothing but ruins. When the wind blows, it stirs up clouds of ashes, as if it is weeping.
Sun Wukong stood on a pile of ruins, his golden cudgel slamming heavily on the ground, his monkey hairs standing on end.
He looked around with his sharp eyes, but couldn't see even a trace of a celestial being. There was only deathly silence and faint, almost imperceptible wails carried on the wind.
Ten-thousand-year-old snow musk?
Where can one find such a place in these ruins of a celestial home that have been completely wiped out?
Sun Wukong gripped his golden cudgel tightly, his knuckles turning white.
He suddenly remembered his master's slightly protruding belly and the hard-won glimmer of light in his eyes.
"I, Old Sun, want to see which bastard has turned Dongsheng Shenzhou into this hellhole!"
He gritted his teeth and slammed his club into the ground. With a loud bang, dust billowed up and a bottomless crack spread out, reaching deep into the earth's core.
Meanwhile, in the royal palace of the Western Liang Women's Kingdom, the Queen watched as Tang Sanzang lay down again, personally tucking him in, a faint smile playing on her lips.
procrastination?
Of course, it's procrastination.
But as long as we can keep him, what does it matter if it drags on forever?
She lowered her head and kissed Tang Sanzang's forehead, her voice as soft as a dream.
"Master, you can't escape."
Tang Sanzang kept his eyes closed, his eyelashes trembled, but he ultimately did not open them.
Outside the window, the moonlight was as cold as water, chilling to the bone.
On the East China Sea, the wind was calm and the waves were still, but there was only a deathly stillness.
Sun Wukong rode his somersault cloud from west to east, sweeping across thousands of miles of waves, but felt his heart grow heavier and heavier.
In the past, the sea was dotted with fairy islands and sacred mountains, with dragon palaces scattered about, and shrimp soldiers and crab generals coming and going in an endless stream. Now, as far as the eye can see, gray fog fills the sky, the water is black, and even fish and shrimp have disappeared.
He landed on a reef, propped himself up with his stick, and looked around. He saw the "Three Immortal Islands" that should have stood proudly in the heart of the sea.
Where it was, only a pitch-black void vortex remained, as if it had been torn apart by some immense force, leaving not even a trace behind.
"Where's the island?"
Wukong murmured, his voice dry and parched from being swallowed by deathly energy, "Fangcun Mountain, Yingzhou, Penglai... are they all gone?"
He sensed something was wrong and tried to calculate with his fingers, but all he found was a chaotic fog, as if a great terror was obscuring the secrets of heaven.
Thinking of his master Tang Sanzang's current predicament, he could no longer sit still. With a swing of his golden cudgel, he transformed into a golden light and headed straight for Luojia Mountain in the South China Sea.
In the bamboo grove, in front of the Tide Sound Cave, Guanyin Bodhisattva sits upright on a prayer mat, chanting sutras with her palms together.
Wukong somersaulted onto the stone steps, and without even bothering to bow, he knelt down with a thud, his voice hoarse: "Bodhisattva! Please save my master! He... he mistakenly drank the water of the Mother-Child River, and now he's more than three months pregnant, but hasn't given birth yet! The Abortion Spring water has also lost its effectiveness!"
The Bodhisattva opened his eyes, his gaze piercing through Wukong, as if he had seen through everything.
She sighed softly, her voice gentle yet tinged with an indescribable weariness: "Wukong, your master's tribulation is inextricably linked to the great changes in the world."
This humble monk had long sensed it, but... alas, follow me.
She rose, took light steps, and led Wukong out of the Tide Sound Cave, heading towards the Western Liang Women's Kingdom.
Along the way, the Bodhisattva's white robes fluttered, and the willow branch in his hand gently swayed the vase, sprinkling drops of sweet dew. Wherever he passed, the deathly aura dissipated slightly, but it quickly returned, as if this deathly aura had a source that could not be cut off.
The Kingdom of Women in Xiliang is located at the foot of Duanlong Cliff on Jieyang Mountain.
The abortion spring still gushes forth, its water crystal clear and brimming with spiritual energy.
At the foot of the mountain, dozens of village women who had mistakenly drunk water from the Zimu River were gathered. Each of them was heavily pregnant and their faces were full of sorrow.
When Guanyin arrived, the women had already received the news and knelt down, crying and begging the Bodhisattva to save their lives.
The Bodhisattva nodded slightly, and with a flick of a willow branch, several drops of spring water flew out and landed on everyone's lips.
All I heard was a "thump".
After a few swallows, the women felt excruciating abdominal pain and collapsed to the ground. In less than half an hour, they all gave birth to babies, their cries deafening, and both mother and child were safe.
Wukong watched in disbelief, scratching his head and saying, "What... what's going on? Why does it work for them, but not for my master?"
The Bodhisattva did not answer, but looked only at the dilapidated Jieyang Temple on the cliff top.
Inside the temple, a Taoist immortal in tattered robes had already sensed the arrival of the two powerful figures. His face turned pale, and with a flicker of his body, he transformed into a wisp of black smoke and fled northward.
Wukong recognized him at a glance as the True Immortal Ruyi who had guarded the Abortion Spring back then. He was immediately enraged and swung his golden cudgel to chase after him.
"Wukong, come back."
The Bodhisattva spoke softly, but the sound made Wukong freeze, stopping him in mid-air.
"Bodhisattva! That wicked Taoist priest has caused my master to suffer. I must smash him to pieces!"
"He's nothing but a pawn."
The Bodhisattva shook his head, his gaze profound. "The true tribulation lies within your master's womb."
She took Wukong back to the inn where Tang Sanzang was staying.
Tang Sanzang lay on the couch, his face ashen. His lower abdomen, beneath his monk's robe, was swollen like a drum, his skin so taut it was almost transparent, and one could clearly see the faint fetal movements inside.
His eyes were tightly closed, cold sweat beaded on his forehead, and his lips were cracked, yet he forced a voice to Wukong, "Wukong... your master... I'm afraid I won't make it through this..."
Wukong rushed to the bedside, his eyes red-rimmed: "Master! Don't say such discouraging things! The Bodhisattva has come, the Bodhisattva will surely have a way!"
The Bodhisattva approached, extended her slender hand, and placed it on Tang Sanzang's abdomen.
In an instant, her eyebrows furrowed, her expression changed slightly, and her fingertips seemed to be jolted by something, causing her to take a half step back.
The willow branch in the vase snapped open.
With a snap, one broke.
"how?"
Wukong asked urgently.
The Bodhisattva remained silent for a long time before slowly speaking: "The fetus... has taken shape."
Not only was it unharmed by the Abortion Spring, but it also used the power of the spring to absorb most of your master's cultivation... If this pregnancy is delayed any longer, I'm afraid..."
Tang Sanzang suddenly opened his eyes, his eyes filled with despair.
He trembled as he raised his hand and touched his swollen belly. Suddenly, he heard a very soft baby cry from inside his belly. The sound was tender, yet it carried a strange ethereal quality that penetrated deep into his consciousness.
At the same time, a powerful suction force surged from his abdomen, and his golden body's magical power, like a burst dam, rushed wildly towards the fetus! (End of Chapter)