Journey to the West: Tang Monk Conquers Everything

In the Glycyrrhiza Garden, for Fairy Zixia, experiencing the incident with the Star Monarch of Warring States was just a minor interlude; after confessing her feelings to Sun Wukong but being rejected, Zixia returned to the Glycyrrhiza Garden and continued her duties as if nothing had affected her state of mind.

However, Zixia herself knew that after being rejected by Sun Wukong, she became significantly concerned about her lowly status for the first time. Continue your journey with My Virtual Library Empire

The gap between her status and that of Sun Wukong was far greater than she had imagined, which was evident from the incident with the Star Monarch of Warring States.

The Star Monarch of Warring States was a Righteous God of the Heavenly Court, a noble Second-Rank Divine General. In front of him, her status was so low that he could take her life effortlessly, just as if he were crushing an ant.

But what about Sun Wukong? He could also kill the Star Monarch of Warring States without the Jade Emperor holding him accountable!

Although Sun Wukong was punished by the Jade Emperor with a caning for killing the Star Monarch of Warring States, with his Vajra Indestructible Body, wasn't that punishment just a mere formality?

Would the Jade Emperor not know?

"Ah..." Lost in thought, pondering the disparity in strength between herself and Sun Wukong, Fairy Zixia couldn't help but let out a long sigh.

If her status were worthy of the Monkey, Fairy Zixia felt she would entirely try to woo him herself.

Yet, the disparity between their statuses was simply too vast, leaving her totally devoid of the courage to even try.

"Zixia, your wounds have not yet healed; don't strain yourself with these tasks. Go and rest instead!" Just as Zixia's mind was filled with tumultuous thoughts, suddenly, a fairy came over, smiling at Zixia.

"Indeed, Zixia, you should rest. Let us handle these tasks here; you just need to recuperate!" Not only the fairies of the Glycyrrhiza Garden said this, but the Immortal Maiden in charge of the garden affairs also spoke up.

"I'm not tired, and my injuries are not serious, Third Prince Nezha's medicine is very effective!" Hearing these companions' words, Zixia shook her head.

She knew their thoughts well; clearly, they had recognized her relationship with Sun Wukong, thus their flattery had become even more pronounced than before.

"You all really..." Simultaneously, not only the fairies and the Immortal Maiden of Glycyrrhiza Garden said so, but even the patrolling Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, who happened to pass by, spoke up as they saw Zixia working busily in the garden: "Fairy Zixia's injuries have not healed, and you still don't help her out a bit?"

"Yes, yes, we will help out right away!" Following the remarks of these Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, several other fairies gathered around and almost snatched the tasks from Zixia's hands, while urging her to sit down and rest immediately.

"You all, ah..." Seeing the overly enthusiastic demeanor of the people around her, Zixia opened her mouth wanting to say something, but in the end, all that emerged was another sigh.

Zixia realized they were decidedly set on currying favor with her, each one displaying such fervor that she could hardly keep a cold face in response.

Shaking her head, she returned to her room alone. Sitting by the window, Zixia watched the other fairies busily working in the garden, her mind swirling with thoughts.

Sometimes, if nobody chooses to pierce through that layer of pretense, then we can all continue being good friends.

But once that pretense is pierced, with one party intentional and one unintentional, the next meeting would only be filled with awkwardness.

Thus, Zixia felt that she might no longer have the courage to face Sun Wukong again—as friends, perhaps their relationship had reached its end?

Their efforts to ingratiate themselves with her were, in fact, pointless now.

"Fairy Zixia, is it? It seems you are quite troubled!" Just as Zixia was wallowing in self-pity, suddenly a ethereal and mysterious voice sounded behind her.

Zixia turned around and saw an enchanting figure standing behind her, which appeared to be female!

Why say appears? Because this figure seemed like a cloud of black mist, allowing only a hazy glimpse of the person's silhouette, but not a clear view of her face.

The black silhouette that appeared behind Zixia looked very mysterious.

"Who are you, Evil Demon! How dare you intrude into the Heavenly Court!" Seeing the sudden appearance of the black silhouette behind her, which clearly didn't look benevolent, Zixia's expression changed as she called out in a low voice.

"Evil Demon? I am no evil demon, but rather your benefactor!" Hearing Zixia's words, the dark, enchanting figure suddenly let out a light laugh.

With that, she paused briefly before continuing, "I won't waste words. I've come to you for one reason: do you wish to become stronger?"

"Only if your own power increases will you gain the attention of the Empress, and only with her recognition can your status improve enough to match Sun Wukong. What do you say? Do you wish to become stronger?" The enchanting shadow's voice was filled with a tempting tone as she spoke to Fairy Zixia.

"Don't be hasty in rejecting me, think it over! The Immortal Realm is not truly a place where one can feel at ease; on the contrary, the hierarchy here is even more severe than in the Mortal World!" This enchanting voice spoke calmly to Zixia.

"If you agree, you will be able to control your own fate, not only befitting Sun Wukong, but also securing your own status and position. But if you refuse, you will spend your life as a mere fairy in the Glycyrrhiza Garden, spending millennia among flowers and ultimately dying here. Think about it well, I will come to see you tonight and hope for a satisfactory answer," she said.

As her voice fell, the dark figure didn't say much more, nor did she give Zixia a chance to respond; she instantly transformed into a puff of black smoke and dissipated.

"Just now, who was that person!?"

Throughout the whole ordeal, Fairy Zixia barely had a chance to speak. Watching the direction the black smoke disappeared, her face filled with surprise.

It didn't seem like he was anyone good, but why would she come to look for her?

Confronted with this mysterious figure of unknown origin, Zixia naturally did not dare to trust him; no one knew what his intentions were, or what schemes he might have.

However, it must be said, those words spoken by the dark figure had struck a chord with Zixia.

In the Immortal Realm, there were hierarchies, sometimes even more severe than in the Mortal World. Perhaps this was her only chance to take control of her own destiny.

Could it be that she really must refuse? To be forever reduced to a small fairy in the Glycyrrhiza Garden, forever doing odd jobs?

...

Meanwhile, Muzha's figure hovered in midair, looking at the Golden Haze Crown in his hand, his gaze flickering.

Once the thought of revenge had arisen in his heart, it was like it had taken root and sprouted, unstoppable.

Golden Haze Crown? The experienced Muzha, who had lived through the Deification Catastrophe, of course knew that this was originally a treasure belonging to Fire Spirit Holy Lady, a disciple of the great disciple of the Sect of Intercepting, Taoist Duobao.

This Dharma Treasure not only could summon three thousand Fire Dragon Soldiers, but it also had a remarkable ability of invisibility. During the time of the Deification Catastrophe, the Fire Spirit Holy Lady had relied on the Golden Haze Crown's power to injure many, this treasure could be said to be the supreme treasure of chaotic fights and stealth attacks.

After the Deification Catastrophe, Taoist Duobao entered the Buddhist Sect and became Tathagata.

Following the death of Fire Spirit Holy Lady, the Golden Haze Crown then fell into the hands of Tathagata, who included it in his treasure vault.

After a moment's quiet contemplation, Muzha touched his shoulder, where an arm had been severed from the root. His immortal body had suffered such a heavy blow, and his cultivation levels were already affected, making it much more difficult to ascend to the realm of Taiyi True Immortal in the future.

Thinking this, hatred quickly grew in Muzha's heart.

Then, he lifted the Golden Haze Crown and placed it directly on his head.

Upon the crown, stream of light rippled continuously, and in a moment, it enveloped Muzha's whole body like a waterfall.

Immediately thereafter, Muzha's figure vanished completely in midair, his form entirely hidden.

The Bodhisattva had asked him to deliver the letter and the Golden Haze Crown to Lingji Bodhisattva, but he hadn't specified when it had to be delivered.

Under such circumstances, perhaps using it a bit before delivering it wouldn't be an issue, right?

...

Meanwhile, elsewhere, as Jiang Liu and his group journeyed westward, after several days, suddenly, they came across a great river appearing unexpectedly, blocking their path.

Upon closer inspection, this river was incredibly wide, and although it wasn't as vast as the Liusha River they had encountered before, which was eight hundred li wide, it was still at least two or three hundred li in breadth.

More importantly, the river looked filthy. Looking at its waters, which were pitch dark, it seemed almost like ink.

"What a formidable Black River. Disciples, how shall we cross this great river?" Jiang Liu turned around, facing the obstructive Black River, and asked Sun Wukong and the others.

"This..." Hearing Jiang Liu's words, Sun Wukong and the others looked at each other in dismay.

"Master, do you have any good ideas?" Zhu Bajie, naturally lazy, was unwilling to use his brain and upon hearing this, he asked in return.

The wisdom of the master is the highest. If there were a problem, wouldn't it be up to the master himself to figure out, rather than asking his disciples?

"Well, I don't have any good ideas for crossing the river either!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Liu's eyes twinkled with amusement, but he made a troubled expression and said,

With a sigh of "helplessness," he said, "In that case, we, the master and disciples, can only go around this great river!"

However, no sooner had Jiang Liu finished speaking than suddenly, a boat pushed its way over from within the Black River.

At the same time, the boatman on the boat shouted loudly to Jiang Liu, "Honored masters, do you wish to cross the river? This old man can take you across!"