Journey to the West: Tang Monk Conquers Everything

Round and round, dragging on, another month has slipped by.

A gust of wind blew by, bringing with it a hint of coolness, as Jiang Liu raised his hand while seated on the White Dragon Horse. A snowflake gently floated down from the sky, landing on Jiang Liu's palm and quickly melting away, leaving behind only a trace of cold seeping into his heart.

"Is it already winter?" he asked, lifting his gaze to the sky, where he could see the snow fluttering down, increasing in number.

Unknowingly, it had already become winter, and when Jiang Liu thought about it carefully, he had been in the Journey to the West World for more than half a year already.

Thinking back to his days in Jinshan Temple, life was plain and simple, even if he just chopped wood and cooked meals daily, it was very peaceful. Not like now, where it felt like there was a sword hanging over his head, with the timing of its fall drawing ever closer, forcing him to increase his strength as much as possible.

Thinking about the days in Jinshan Temple seemed very distant now, and thinking about his previous life felt even more distant and foreign.

Habit is indeed a powerful force. In just a short half a year, it seemed he had gotten used to the world of Journey to the West and had slowly started to forget about his modern life in the previous world.

Jiang Liu sat on the horseback, sighs of reflection set aside for the moment, as the White Dragon Horse ambled casually along.

Ever since they came down from Black Wind Mountain, after Jiang Liu said there was no need to run so fast, the White Dragon Horse had been slowly ambling along ever since.

Why did Master want to travel so leisurely without any hurry? The White Dragon Horse did not know the reason, but it was very clear that the leader of this Journey to the West Pilgrimage Team was Jiang Liu. Thus, it did not need to ask too much, just follow his orders well and everything would run smoothly once they reached the Western Heaven and received his seal.

After quietly reflecting for a moment on the horseback, Jiang Liu gathered his spirits and shook his head inwardly.

Right now, he had been forced onto the road of the Journey to the West, with life and death dangers drawing ever nearer. What time did he have for such reflections? He would have to save these thoughts until after he had survived the crises.

After collecting his thoughts, Jiang Liu crossed his legs on the back of the White Dragon Horse and prepared to practice the Heavenly Dragon Zen Sound Cultivation Technique.

Initially, Jiang Liu had many reasons not to accept the White Dragon Horse, but after accepting it, he found numerous benefits.

The greatest of these advantages was certainly the steadiness of the White Dragon Horse's steps, enabling him to sit cross-legged on its back to cultivate the Heavenly Dragon Zen Sound without worrying about falling off.

It could be said to be an unexpected pleasant surprise because, without the White Dragon Horse, he would have wasted time walking on his own feet.

Now, sitting on the back of the White Dragon Horse, both the Journey to the West and cultivation could proceed without hindrance.

If he had known this sooner, he might not have refused the White Dragon Horse's offer at all.

"The terrifying law of 'becoming fragrant eventually', nobody can escape it," thinking of his initial refusal and his current delightful state of mind, Jiang Liu inwardly ridiculed himself before immersing his spirit deeply.

"Hey, Master, there's a village not far ahead. Didn't you say you wanted to replenish some supplies?" However, just as Jiang Liu was about to enter the state of cultivation, Sun Wukong, who was in mid-air, landed down and reported to Jiang Liu.

"Hmm, we've been traveling for half a month, and we've finally come across another village," hearing Sun Wukong's report, Jiang Liu said with a bit of vigor.

"Half a month, and it seems we've only traveled five hundred li..." hearing Jiang Liu's words, Sun Wukong rolled his eyes and murmured slightly.

"Wukong, I think wearing that tiger skin shorts is a bit harsh on the eyes. I think you should wear a tiger skin skirt instead. The skirt suits you more," turning his head to look at Sun Wukong, Jiang Liu suggested.

Wearing a pair of tiger skin shorts, with a hole for the monkey's tail to swing through, Jiang Liu always felt this image was bizarre and uncomfortable to him.

"No, I, Old Sun, will not wear a tiger skin skirt!" However, hearing Jiang Liu's suggestion, Sun Wukong rejected it immediately and decisively shook his head.

"Master and Big Brother are bickering again," bowing its head and walking slowly, the White Dragon Horse did not intend to join in the conversation between Sun Wukong and Jiang Liu.

After having lived together for so long, the White Dragon Horse had gotten used to the dialogues between Jiang Liu and Sun Wukong. Sometimes, listening to their banter was quite interesting, wasn't it?

As they spoke, in no time at all, Jiang Liu's party arrived at a village only to see that the village was quite large, appearing to have two or three hundred households.

At the entrance, a large memorial archway was erected with three big characters on it: Gao Family Village.

"Gao Family Village? Have we already arrived at Gao Family Village?" Looking at the name of the village, a thought struck Jiang Liu.

It seems that Zhu Bajie should be inside this Gao Family Village, right?

Walking into Gao Family Village, the village, comprising two to three hundred households, had its own small marketplace. Apparently, it wasn't just the people from Gao Family Village who traded goods here; even the surrounding smaller villages would come here for the market days.

The marketplace of Gao Family Village, though small, was bustling nonetheless, with a variety of goods available such as rice, flour, cloth, and even vegetables and some steamed buns and other snacks.

Jiang Liu walked through the small market, with the White Dragon Horse closely following behind him, while Sun Wukong sat squatting on the horse's head.

"Monkeys, so much fun..." In the marketplace, many boys and girls had rarely seen steeds or monkeys, so they all followed behind Jiang Liu with laughter and joy, their attention focused on Sun Wukong and the White Dragon Horse.

After quickly purchasing some supplies like rice and flour, Jiang Liu looked around for a moment and then went to a nearby stall to buy some meat buns. Approaching the children, he said, "Kids, would you like to eat these?"

"Yes," some of the children, seeing the large meat buns in Jiang Liu's hands, had a longing look in their eyes as they chorused in response.

"Then I'll ask you a question, and if you can answer it, I'll let you have them, okay?" Jiang Liu spoke up.

"Sure, big brother, go ahead and ask," the children answered in unison, hearing Jiang Liu's words.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"I want to know, in Gao Family Village, there's a girl named Gao Cuilan. Do you know where her house is?" Looking at the dozen or so lively children in front of him, Jiang Liu asked.

Yes, since he had already arrived at Gao Family Village, naturally, he wanted to meet Zhu Bajie and see what he looked like now.

He remembered that in the original story, Zhu Bajie's wife was from Gao Family Village and her name seemed to be Gao Cuilan.

"Eh? Cuilan, this big brother is looking for you," hearing Jiang Liu's inquiry, a little boy next to him said in surprise to the girl beside him.

"Big brother, are you looking for me? My name is Cuilan," a little girl about seven or eight years old, with big and shiny black eyes, said to Jiang Liu.

"You, you're Gao Cuilan?" Stunned by the little girl who looked to be only seven or eight years old, Jiang Liu froze, with a bewildered expression on his face.

"Is there anyone else in Gao Family Village named Cuilan?" Incredulously, Jiang Liu asked.

"It doesn't seem like it," the children looked at each other, and finally, one by one, they shook their heads.

"Well, it seems she really is the one."

The children's responses caused the corners of Jiang Liu's mouth to twitch slightly, and he also came to a realization.

Although so far on his journey westward, several major events, such as Sun Wukong under the Five Elements Mountain, the White Dragon Horse under Eagle Sorrow Stream, the Black Bear Demon at the Guanyin Zen Temple in Jinchi, were all similar to the original story, he had set out several years earlier than in the original.

In the original, Tang Monk set out when he was over twenty years old, but as for him? He began his journey at fifteen!

Therefore, the originally young miss Gao Cuilan in the original work was now just a seven or eight-year-old little girl—completely reasonable?

"So you are Gao Cuilan, well, let me ask you, has your family had any strangers visiting recently?" After distributing all the meat buns, and with the last bun placed in Gao Cuilan's small hand, Jiang Liu asked softly with a warm smile on his face.

Grabbing the meat bun extended to her, Gao Cuilan took a big bite, cheek bulging as she shook her head, "No, there haven't been any strangers at my house recently."

"Miss, you're over here. Let's go back," but before Jiang Liu could continue to ask, a person dressed as a servant came over, looking at Jiang Liu with some wariness. Find adventures on empire

From the original work, it was known that the Gao family was quite well-off. They might have made some wealth due to Zhu Bajie's arrival, but having pavilions, maids, and servants all showed the family's prosperity.

Having such wealth in this village was naturally very impressive.

Watching Jiang Liu warily, the servant quickly led Gao Cuilan away, and Jiang Liu naturally did not stop them.

Arriving too early, Gao Cuilan was still but a little girl, and Zhu Bajie's whereabouts were still unknown. At that moment, Jiang Liu was unsure where to go next.

However, Jiang Liu quickly formed a plan in his mind.

Since he had arrived early, perhaps Zhu Bajie was with Second Ms. Luan at this time?

Additionally, he had received a passive task from the Black Bear Demon.

After some consideration, Jiang Liu decided to first go check out Yunzhan Cave of Fuling Mountain. One reason was to find the legendary Second Sister Luan, who had never appeared in the original story, and the other was to see if he could locate Zhu Bajie.

"Master, do you have acquaintances here?" Following Jiang Liu out of Gao Family Village, Sun Wukong curiously asked.

He had just arrived at Gao Family Village and already knew whom to find by name?

"Nothing much, Wukong. Go and find out about the whereabouts of Yunzhan Cave on Fuling Mountain," without explaining further on that matter, Jiang Liu changed the subject and sent Sun Wukong to find Second Ms. Luan's location.

(PS: May I ask if you still have monthly tickets in your hands!?)"