Chapter 10: Wukong Suppresses the River and Destroys the Golden Mountain

Wukong had just left the cave and transformed himself, changing from a young Confucian scholar into a Taoist in his late twenties, sporting a goatee. Wukong found it amusing, but the thought of not being able to show his true face saddened him.

Recently, the Eastern Divine Region was in utter chaos!

Wukong knew that this was the consequence of killing Tang Monk. In many places, monks from the Buddhist Sect were preaching, using it as a pretext to search for Wukong. Heavenly Soldiers also appeared from time to time, disguised as mortals, merely putting on a show, and after half an hour or so, they would soar back to the heavens.

Suddenly, it was said everywhere in the Eastern Divine Region that deities descended to relieve suffering, while others claimed that demons hid among the mortals.

The Buddhist Sect aggressively invaded the Eastern Divine Region, with many of its disciples preaching and building temples. The Taoist Sect, however, turned a deaf ear, keeping their thoughts to themselves. If the Buddhist Sect continued to be unabashed in capturing more of the people's Incense Willpower, they would hardly sit back and relax.

Emperor Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty welcomed the arrival of the Buddhist Sect. Golden Cicada was reincarnated as Tang Monk, and he was the Emperor's imperial brother. Moved by a divine intention, he had ordered Tang Monk to go to Western Heaven to fetch the scriptures. Grieving over the death of Tang Monk, Li Shimin ordered all provincial government offices to assist the disciples of the Buddhist Sect in finding the perpetrator. But his subordinates were mere mortals, how could they possibly find Wukong?

"These Taoists really can hold their peace, seeing many cities in the Eastern Divine Region build Buddhist temples and erect numerous Buddha statues, yet they do not make a move!" Wukong sat on a cloud, watched everything happening in the city below, his expression calm. Heavenly Soldiers and disciples of the Buddhist Sect who passed by did not recognize him, assuming he was just a Loose Cultivator.

Wukong thought to himself, "The intentions of the Taoist Sect are hard to fathom, but the wild ambitions of the Buddhist Sect are known to all! The Six-Eared Macaque also has some schemes up its sleeve. Even though he fled to the Demon Abyss in the Northern Region, he made the Buddhist Sect uncomfortable by spreading such news."

After injuring Bodhisattva Guanyin and fleeing, the Six-Eared Macaque spread the news about the conspiracy of fetching scriptures from Western Heaven everywhere he went. Almost every cultivator knew of this, angering the entire Taoist Sect. Meanwhile, Tathagata used this opportunity to capture Wukong and leveraged Emperor Li Shimin's influence to aggressively promote Buddhism in the Eastern Divine Region... This pool of water grew murkier, yet no one was willing to be the first to jump out.

While pondering, Wukong headed towards the direction of Suzhou and Hangzhou.

Upon arriving at Hangzhou, before he could descend from the sky, he spotted a monk chasing two women in front of him.

Both women were dressed elegantly, one in blue and the other in white. The woman in white exuded regal grace, while the one in blue looked charming and delicate.

"Turns out they are two snake spirits," Wukong couldn't help but smile lightly.

The monk shouted from behind, "Fellow Taoist ahead, please stop those two demons for me."

However, Wukong berated loudly, "You people of the Buddhist Sect are brimming with audacity. You demonic monk, to think you'd ask for my help, truly too much! Don't worry, ladies, let me kill this demonic monk for you!"

The woman in white urgently said, "Taoist Master, do not overexert yourself, this Monk Fa Hai is extremely powerful!"

The woman in blue, however, said, "Then we are much obliged to you!"

The woman in white quickly added, "Xiaoqing, how can you be like this? This monk is formidable, how can you—"

Before she could finish, the Taoist transformed into a streak of azure smoke, appearing behind Monk Fa Hai in the blink of an eye.

Monk Fa Hai was shocked, knowing he had encountered a high-level Taoist. He wielded the magical alms bowl gifted by Guanyin, turning it into a beam of golden light to protect himself.

But Wukong's expression didn't change at all, a flash of murderous intent in his eyes turned into an icy cold indifference. With a flick of his sleeve, a long spear flew out from within, and holding it with one hand, Wukong thrust it fiercely. With high cultivation level and wielding an unparalleled magical treasure, his powerful strike penetrated even the magical alms bowl granted by Guanyin.

Suddenly, blood splattered three feet, and the alms bowl was pierced by Wukong's spear, followed by Monk Fa Hai's heart.

Wukong withdrew the spear and then transformed it into a horsetail whisk, harshly swiping it while pretending to shout, "Face the battle warrior!"

Monk Fa Hai's body and the alms bowl were instantly swept into ashes by the horsetail whisk, dispersed into nothingness by a blast of energy.

"Hmph." Wukong scoffed lightly, feigning arrogance, "With such mana, you dare to be arrogant."

The woman in white flew up to Wukong, bringing the woman called Xiaoqing with her, and they both bowed, saying, "Thank you, Taoist Master, for saving our lives."

Wukong asked, "What are your names?"

Xiaoqing quickly replied, "I am Xiaoqing, and this is my sister, Bai Suzhen."

Wukong asked, "You are snake spirits, why are you not in Southern Ridge Demon Mountain, yet appear here in Hangzhou of the Eastern Divine Region?"

Bai Suzhen replied, "To reply to the Taoist Master, we have grown up in the waters of Hangzhou Lake since childhood, and are not from any Southern Ridge Demon Mountain. My sister and I have practiced for a thousand years before we could transform into human forms." Her tone was somewhat melancholic, as if deeply troubled, "Sadly, I fell in love with a mortal... Yet the monk, on the pretext of the natural divide between human and demon, tried everything to kill me and my sister."

"Oh?" Wukong curiously asked, "Does that mortal love you?"

Xiaoqing snorted, "Love is inherently free—why distinguish between human and demon? As long as there is love, they can be together. My brother-in-law truly loves my sister, but that meddling monk insisted on using the natural divide as a reason to capture and kill us."

Upon hearing Xiaoqing's words, Wukong was reminded of the Ziwei flower and the Immortal Fairy named Zixia. A pain struck his heart, and he frowned slightly, saying, "You are right; who cares whether it's a human or a demon when there is love? Aren't many of the companions of deities in heaven fox or crane spirits..."

"Ah, Fa Hai, you do not understand love," Wukong lamented to himself.

Seeing Wukong's impressive abilities yet approachable demeanor, Xiaoqing felt a sense of closeness and laughed, "That monk didn't have much mana, he was just wielding a magical treasure given by Bodhisattva Guanyin to act fiercely for a while. Who would have thought the Taoist would be so formidable? With just one move, he reduced that monk and the magical treasure to ash."

Wukong nodded slightly and said, "Do you know which temple this Fa Hai monk comes from?"

Bai Suzhen said, "It's the Golden Mountain Temple nearby."

Wukong said, "Ah! That monk isn't a good person, and presumably, the monks in this temple are no better. Let's bring this poor Taoist there for a look. If it's unsatisfactory, I'll overturn it with one spear."

Wukong thought to himself, "I have an unresolved grudge with the Buddhist Sect. Now their conspiracy is exposed, annoying the Taoist sect. Despite that, Sakyamuni insists on introducing Buddhism into the Eastern Divine Region... Hehe, Old Sun will add fuel to the fire, starting with this Golden Mountain Temple to stir up a dispute between Buddhism and Taoism! The arrival of Xiaoqing and Bai Suzhen is truly timely." Then suddenly shaking his head inwardly, "No, no, Bai Suzhen and Xiaoqing are both from the Demon Tribe, it's only right that I help them."

Those who engage in ruthless acts must coat their actions with a veneer of morality and righteousness. Wukong was also seeking some peace of mind, albeit with a bit of self-deception.

Xiaoqing clapped continuously and said, "Great, great, the Taoist is really righteous!"

Bai Suzhen frowned and said, "Xiaoqing, don't be disrespectful!"

Xiaoqing stuck out her tongue and said nothing more.

Wukong said, "I believe you have also somewhat seen the true colors of the Buddhist Sect. I've been unhappy with these bald monks for a long time, now lead me to that Golden Mountain Temple."

Bai Suzhen said, "It's only Fa Hai from Golden Mountain Temple who's making things difficult for us, it has nothing to do with the others."

Wukong, displeased, frowned and said, "Lead me there when I ask you to, why so many words!"

"Since you have joined the Buddhist Sect, don't blame Grandpa Sun for being cruel and ruthless. In my former days, I was just a carefree Mountain King. It was you all who step by step kindly led Grandpa here!" Wukong thought silently inside, feeling not a bit of remorse about slaughtering the innocent.

Bai Suzhen and Xiaoqing, seeing Wukong annoyed, shuddered in fear. They had clearly seen, just moments earlier, this Taoist spearing Fa Hai to death. Even Fa Hai's treasure, bestowed by Guanyin, was shattered by this Taoist's spear… If they further upset this Taoist now, they feared they wouldn't even be able to escape.

Thus, Bai Suzhen and Xiaoqing led Wukong forward, flying ahead.

In front of Golden Mountain Temple.

Wukong and his companions stopped. He surveyed the temple for a while and said, "What method do you think we should use to destroy this place?"

Xiaoqing smiled and said, "Why not set it on fire, Taoist?"

Wukong looked around and said, "Burning it might not clean it thoroughly! Since there are no commoners around, I'll just flood it. Let's drown these bald monks in a deluge at Golden Mountain!"

"Good, a flood would be perfect, none shall escape!" Xiaoqing clapped her hands and laughed, though Bai Suzhen felt reluctant.

Wukong, spear in hand, arrived above Golden Mountain Temple and thrust down with his spear, collapsing the Leifeng Pagoda instantly. Many demons imprisoned within escaped, bowed to Wukong, and then fled in all directions.

"Who is the demon causing trouble at my Golden Mountain Temple!"

Before the monks could emerge, Wukong lifted his hand, and suddenly the river roared and turned into a ferocious beast, rushing towards Golden Mountain Temple!

The flood overwhelmed Golden Mountain Temple, the walls crumbled, and hundreds of monks struggled in the water. Wukong chuckled coldly and speared down to destroy both Tathagata's Golden Body and Guanyin's statue, then struck the water with his spear!

Immediately, the water began to swirl, forming a giant vortex at the center. The monks struggling to fly away were instantly drawn into the vortex. The immense pressure within the vortex ripped their bodies apart. Some had their heads burst under the extreme water pressure!

Blood gushed, turning the scene extremely bloody.

Having done this, Wukong felt his Dao heart flow more clearly, his thoughts more lucid, and the Hongmeng Purple Qi within him surged.

"Wow, the Taoist's mana knows no bounds!" exclaimed Xiaoqing, clapping her hands in delight.

"Fine, these bald monks oppressed our Demon Tribe too much. Now they've met such a fate, they deserve it," Bai Suzhen whispered, closing her eyes to avoid seeing the blood-soaked river.

Xiaoqing laughed and said, "Sister, from today, you and Brother-in-law can grow old together without concern, now that Fa Hai has been reduced to ashes, he won't be able to trouble your happiness."

Bai Suzhen nodded lightly, thinking of Xu Xian, her heart warmed.

Xiaoqing, watching Wukong's lonely silhouette, could see a mysterious glint shine in her eyes.

Wukong burst into laughter, causing the river to surge tumultuously, his heart unsure whether it was more filled with sorrow or exhilaration...