Journey to the West: Tang Monk Conquers Everything

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The special effect of heartfelt sincerity subtly influenced Sha Wujing's character.

Originally, because it seemed like his master and others purposefully excluded him, Sha Wujing had no intention of warming up to their cold shoulders.

But now, with a change of thought, Sha Wujing considered that, after all, they were fellow disciples on a journey together, and lately, they had been playing Mahjong and dining together, and the master didn't seem to intentionally keep him out.

In the past, he even purposely avoided eating with them, harboring little schemes, like waiting until they reached the Western Heaven to see the Buddha punish them for drinking, eating meat, and gambling, right?

Upon this reflection, Sha Wujing felt a pang of guilt, as if he had been judging others by his own narrow standards. Facing Jiang Liu, an undertone of guilt emerged in his heart.

After all, throughout the Journey to the West, his own existence had indeed seemed superfluous, as he hadn't found his place of value. It seemed reasonable that the master would look down on him for his lack of worth, didn't it?

If it were a normal situation and the Master had asked him about his original intention for the journey, Sha Wujing would never tell the truth. Instead, he would articulate some grand principles, such as liberating all living beings or the well-being of the people.

But now, with a trace of guilt in his heart, Sha Wujing spoke up, "Actually, Master, my purpose is not as noble as yours. It's quite petty; I just want to properly complete this journey and then be conferred a return to my position among Immortals and Buddhas, and not be a Demon anymore!"

"That's his only purpose!?" Hearing Sha Wujing's words, Jiang Liu's eyebrows raised slightly.

This purpose wasn't wrong in essence, but what Jiang Liu was more concerned about was whether Sha Wujing was fundamentally the Jade Emperor, or to say, an eye placed in the team by Tathagata.

With this thought, Jiang Liu sank into a moment of contemplation before sorting his words and then asking, "If your Master had some matters, say personal ones, that he didn't want others to know about, but the Buddha asked you about them, would you tell?"

"This..." Upon hearing Jiang Liu's inquiry, although the words seemed casual, Sha Wujing found himself at a loss for words, unsure of how to respond.

To divulge it? That seemed unfair to the Master.

But not to? How could he justify that to the Buddha? Moreover, his future prospects were all in the Buddha's hands.

Jiang Liu's expression remained calm, his gaze resting on Sha Wujing, waiting for his answer.

Sha Wujing hesitated, torn between loyalty and duty, unsure of how to respond, as if any answer would be wrong.

The Master's placid gaze seemed to exert a heavy pressure on Sha Wujing.

"Master, I, Old Sun, am back!" Just then, a loud voice rang out, and immediately, Sun Wukong strode into the hall hand-in-hand with Fairy Zixia.

"Ah, Fairy Zixia, welcome, welcome!" Hearing Sun Wukong's call, Jiang Liu glanced at Sun Wukong holding Zixia's hand, speaking without a trace in his voice.

"Phew..."

With Sun Wukong's arrival with Zixia, the Master turned his head away, and Sha Wujing felt the Master's gaze move from him, as if a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders, and he let out a long sigh of relief.

"I greet the Holy Monk and all the gentlemen!" Fairy Zixia offered a respectful salutation to Jiang Liu and the others.

Although she was merely a fairy from the Glycyrrhiza Garden, Zixia was unaware of the identities of Jiang Liu and Zhu Bajie, but she was well aware of Sun Wukong's esteemed status.

As the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together, and if they were Great Sage Equalling Heaven Sun Wukong's master and fellow disciples, it was clear they too had extraordinary status.

Partly because they had an original fondness for Zixia, and perhaps also because of Sun Wukong, the Journey to the West Team was quite fond of her.

After ushering her to take a seat, Jiang Liu curiously looked at Sun Wukong and said, "Wukong, why have you only brought Fairy Zixia here? Where, uh, is your friend?"

"Monkey Brother, don't tell me you only remembered Fairy Zixia and forgot your very loyal and generous friend? I didn't expect you to be such a fair-weather friend, forsaking fraternity for beauty. I, Old Pig, am ashamed to associate with you!"

Following Jiang Liu's words, before Sun Wukong could answer, Zhu Bajie suddenly spoke up, casting Sun Wukong in a disdainful light.

"You blockhead!" Hearing Zhu Bajie's words, Sun Wukong easily grasped Zhu Bajie's big ears with an air of annoyance, saying, "Do you, blockhead, have any place to talk about others on this matter?"

"Indeed, Second Brother, Big Brother is right, you really have no right to speak about favoring beauty over friendship!" Perhaps because of the influence of sincere empathy, Sha Wujing no longer considered himself an outsider. Hearing this, he couldn't help but nod in agreement, siding with Sun Wukong.

"Ouch, ouch, ouch, Monkey Brother, I was wrong!" Zhu Bajie quickly begged for mercy as Sun Wukong twisted his ear.

Upon hearing Zhu Bajie plead, Sun Wukong finally released his grip and sat back down.

He then looked at Jiang Liu and answered, "Master, my friend happened not to be home, so I only brought Zixia back!"

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"Not at home, huh? Then let it be, having the thought is enough. I imagine your friend would appreciate it too. But, Wukong, when Bajie said you favor beauty over friends just now, it seemed you didn't intend to explain yourself.

Instead, you went to twist Bajie's ear, which rather looks like you're trying to cover something up!" After nodding slightly, Jiang Liu continued teasingly with a turn of his talk, laughing as he looked at Sun Wukong.

When Jiang Liu first met Sun Wukong, he flattered him with sweet words, making Wukong beam with delight.

But now, after nearly a year on the Journey to the West, their relationship had grown much more familiar...

Jiang Liu found that jesting with Monkey in his free time seemed quite amusing.

"Master, don't be cheeky, speak properly..." Faced with Jiang Liu's teasing, Sun Wukong wouldn't dare to twist his ear like he did with Zhu Bajie, but his face turned a shade darker as he said discontentedly.

Listening to Jiang Liu's banter with Sun Wukong and seeing his helplessness brought a suppressed smile to Zhu Bajie's face, nearly breaking into laughter.

However, as Sun Wukong glared over at him, Zhu Bajie quickly changed the subject, saying, "Alright, alright, let's not talk anymore, let's eat. This newly forged pot seems rather extraordinary, let's taste it and see!"

"Mm, Zixia, you should try it first. Last time you said you didn't like spicy food, so this time Master made a Yin-Yang Pot, which should suit your taste," Wukong nodded and said to Zixia beside him.

"Thank you, Holy Monk!" As soon as Sun Wukong spoke, Zixia felt as if the Yin-Yang Pot had been specially prepared for her, and her heart filled with both emotion and gratitude as she thanked Jiang Liu.

"Wukong exaggerates, I had already planned to forge a Yin-Yang Pot, not solely for you!" Jiang Liu shook his head in response to Fairy Zixia's thanks.

During the conversation, he signaled everyone to sit down and begin the meal formally.

I must say, leaving aside the Heartfelt special effect, the delicious and savory effects added by the Taiji Yin-Yang Pot indeed greatly enhanced the hot pot's level of deliciousness.

This meal, even Zixia seemed to cast aside her reserve and joined the scramble for food.

A hot pot meal, approximately a hundred pounds of ingredients, ended up in everyone's stomachs. Of course, most of it went into Zhu Bajie's belly.

After the hot pot, everyone rubbed their now rounder bellies.

"Delicious, this hot pot is really delicious! This is living! With days like this, who'd want to be an Immortal?" Zhu Bajie, who'd eaten the most, was utterly satisfied, squinting his eyes and blissfully lounging like a content salted fish.

"Brother, you're wrong there. One should still strive to be an Immortal! Otherwise, one's standing isn't righteous and words aren't proper," Sha Wujing, who was sitting nearby, shook his head as he heard these words.

In comparison, Sha Wujing valued their Immortal and Buddha status the most.

Of course, this might be because his status in the Heavenly Court was the lowest among his three brothers, so he was more attached to it. Discover more content at My Virtual Library Empire

"Brother does make some sense!"

But at this moment, Fairy Zixia, perhaps influenced by the Heartfelt special effect and no longer considering herself an outsider, chimed in, "Actually, the so-called Heavenly Court, as I see it, is full of scheming and conflict. There are too many rules. If one is capable, it's not necessary to be an Immortal at all!"

"Eh? Zixia, your perspective is quite interesting!" Hearing Zixia's words, someone who clearly also could not stand the numerous rules of the Heavenly Court, Sun Wukong looked at her in amazement and commented.

"Having such a perspective is no surprise, but it's regrettable that, seeing through it all, you don't have the means like Monkey here to break free," Zixia said with a shake of her head and a hint of helplessness, responding to Sun Wukong's words.

Indeed, one doesn't need to be an Immortal if they are capable, yet she lacked the ability to oppose the Heavenly Court as Monkey did.

"Break free!? In truth, when have I, Old Sun, ever truly broken free?" Yet, in response to Zixia's comment, Sun Wukong's voice turned somber.

Although he aimed to overturn all the Immortals and Buddhas through this Journey to the West, he was, after all, still trapped in the Immortals and Buddhas' scheme.

If he truly had the ability, he would have marched to Lingxiao or the Great Thunder Monastery long ago...

"This Heartfelt feature is kind of terrifying, subtly influencing everyone's nature!"

Jiang Liu, standing to the side and listening to the dialogue between Sun Wukong and the others, inwardly marveled.

Luckily, he had been mentally prepared and thus consciously controlled himself, being very careful with his words.

Otherwise, without realizing it, who knows what kind of shocking statements might have slipped out by now.