Great Demon Sun Wukong

First it was Black Stone City, and now it's Qingshi City. Sun Wukong was beginning to wonder if there would be any other colored Stone Cities or if he should just encounter five more to form a rainbow. He started with Divine Consciousness Scouting, but to no avail; there was nothing notable about this Qingshi City. The previous Black Stone City at least had a huge statue, but Qingshi City had nothing. He searched all around, and it yielded nothing. However, Sun Wukong wasn't disappointed and decided to find a place to rest again, perhaps waking up to witness an epic battle.

He picked a stone house at random, pushed the door, and walked straight to the stone bed in the inner room. But as soon as he sat down, Sun Wukong suddenly felt that something strange had happened; he seemed to have overlooked something very important. He got off the bed, approached the door carefully, then peeked out and immediately knew what he had missed: on a stone chair in another room sat a person, also clad in black armor but motionless. Earlier, Sun Wukong had actually seen this person but subconsciously mistook them for a statue, so he had paid no mind. However, a closer look revealed that this was definitely a living person and not a statue.

Moreover, the black armor on this person was exactly the same as the one Sun Wukong had seen in Black Stone City. "Could this be the same person in black armor from before? Did he happen to come to Qingshi City and, by an even greater coincidence, choose this room to rest? But isn't this too coincidental?" Sun Wukong muttered to himself. In the past, he would have concluded it was mere coincidence, but not now. Sun Wukong no longer believed in coincidences, he knew they were just deliberate arrangements behind the scenes that one was unaware of.

"Excuse me, I am Sun Wukong. May I ask how to address you?" Facing such an enigmatic person, neither a foe nor a friend, Sun Wukong didn't quite know how to deal with them. The people he had encountered before were either enemies or friends; he had never met someone like this. However, after he asked, the person didn't show the slightest movement, looking just like a true statue, though the life force within them was very strong, certainly a living person. Since the person in black armor had their back turned to Sun Wukong, he couldn't be sure if this was the individual from Black Stone City, so he slowly shifted his position to face the person.

Now, Sun Wukong could see clearly that this was not the person he encountered in Black Stone City. The one from Black Stone City had worn a helmet that completely covered their face, whereas this individual's face was exposed. He waved his hand in front of the person's eyes, yet there was still no response. Could they be asleep? But the posture was too odd for sleeping. He cautiously patted the person's shoulder, still with no reaction. This emboldened Sun Wukong, who patted a bit harder several more times without eliciting any response, allowing him to breathe a sigh of relief.

However, right at that moment, the person suddenly opened their eyes, startling Sun Wukong. It wasn't that he feared an attack; it was more the fear of being caught doing something wrong. But after opening their eyes, the person simply gave Sun Wukong a faint glance and made no aggressive moves. Instead, they stood up and walked over toward the stone gate without looking back. Sun Wukong stood there, a bit at a loss, feeling as if he were bothersome. The previous person in black armor had also given him a glance before leaving, and now this one did the same. What was happening? Scratching his head, he quickly took a few steps to follow.

This time, Sun Wukong was determined to follow and find out the truth. If only one person in black armor had appeared, it could be considered an accidental occurrence due to the incessant devouring births of unique beings between two races but seeing the second one changed the situation. So Sun Wukong decided to follow. This person in black armor's cultivation should be at the Domain Lord Level, and even if a fight did ensue, he wasn't afraid. Moreover, the person's behavior suggested they had no intention of attacking. Sun quickly caught up with the person in black armor and followed silently behind. The black armor person continued to move at a pace similar to flying, resembling the "shrink the earth to an inch" spell.

The person in black armor showed no reaction to Sun Wukong following behind, seemingly oblivious, which suited Sun Wukong just fine. Moreover, after leaving Qingshi City, he discovered that the black armor person's direction was the same as the one he had intended to go. This made Sun Wukong rather pleased; he had been worried initially that following this person might delay him, but it seemed his concerns were unfounded.

Across the endless Gobi desert, the earth and the sky both bled the same shade of red, as if even the wind bore the color of blood. There were no plants to be seen on the ground; however, not far apart, one could find groups of blood beasts either tearing at one another or frolicking. But the most eye-catching sight was none of these—it was a carriage racing across the Gobi. Yes, a carriage, exquisitely luxurious. And it wasn't pulled by horses, but a man in black armor, moving as swiftly as the wind. Inside the carriage, someone was lying comfortably on a fur pelt, casually eating an unidentifiable fruit with his legs crossed, very much at ease.

At first, Sun Wukong followed behind the black-armored individual with caution, not uttering a word. But as they walked on, Wukong began to feel bored and tried to strike up a conversation with the black-armored figure. "Doesn't that black armor of yours get hot?" "Where are you going? Why don't you speak? Are you mute?" "Where do you come from? I popped out of a rock." "Do you have a brother who looks a lot like you, living in a black stone city?" "Do you have any other brothers?" Such random chatter eventually made Wukong laugh as he spoke. He had never noticed how talkative he could be, becoming more and more like his master.

After reciting the Diamond Sutra to the black-armored figure for the third time, Sun Wukong once again felt bored. Seeing the expressionless individual still focused on pressing forwards, Wukong started to entertain himself with the black-armored figure—first by wrapping a rope around the figure's waist to pull himself forward. When he realized the black-armored figure showed no resistance, an idea suddenly struck Wukong. He rummaged in the mystic space and found a carriage, though he had no idea why it was there; he had just stumbled upon it. After asking the black-armored figure for help and taking his silent consent for approval, Wukong hooked up the harness to the figure. Then he comfortably lay down inside the carriage himself.

This was no ordinary carriage but a fine magic treasure. Inside, there was not a trace of the bloody smell from outside, and it was very cool and comfortable; floating in the air, it also guaranteed a smooth ride without any bumps. Sun Wukong truly enjoyed himself, thinking, "If I'd known this black-armored figure was so handy, I wouldn't have let that one in Black Stone City go." While munching on the fruit, he sighed and regretted not having such a carriage during the journey to the West. Then Bajie could've pulled it, saving them from the wind and sun.

However, Wukong didn't completely let his guard down and was constantly alert, scanning the surroundings with his divine sense. Surprisingly, along the way, there were no dangers or attacks from blood beasts, which was highly unusual. He remembered Hei Kui saying that once a living person entered the Life and Death Blood Realm, it would incite all the blood beasts within to attack frenziedly. Yet, so far, Wukong hadn't encountered any significant attacks. The black-armored figure pulled the carriage, sprinting madly for more than ten days without straying from the direction Wukong intended to go. It was as if the black-armored figure was indeed there just to pull Wukong to his destination.

Finally, on the eleventh day, the black-armored figure came to a stop, and naturally, the carriage did as well. Wukong stepped down from the carriage only to find himself standing in front of a tall tower. After the black-armored figure performed a very solemn bow, he turned to look at Wukong and said calmly, "We have arrived at the destination. You can put away the carriage now, can't you?" Wukong suddenly felt very embarrassed, and such embarrassment even made his face turn a bit red. He had always thought the black-armored figure was a sort of flesh puppet, like the Twelve Ancestral Witches, devoid of consciousness. That was why Wukong had been so uninhibited. Had he known this was a sentient being, he would never have behaved in such a way.

"Uh, hehe, sure thing, sure thing!" (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it with a recommendation or monthly pass at Starting Point (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)