Rebirth in Journey to the West: Sun Wukong

"Great Saint, she has kidnapped Master!"

Yuan Hong said resentfully. Sun Wukong was taken aback and turned his gaze to Bai Jingjing, who lay limp on the ground. His eyes narrowed slightly as he asked in a deep voice, "Did you truly kidnap Tang Seng?"

"Bai Jingjing dare not deceive the Great Saint; I indeed had the thought of kidnapping Tang Seng, but I did not succeed. Tang Seng was whisked away by a black wind, truly, it has nothing to do with me!"

The name of Sun Wukong, the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, had long since spread throughout the Three Realms, known by all without exception, markedly different from the deterrent power he wielded in past lives. Faced with Sun Wukong, Bai Jingjing was extremely respectful, not daring to commit the slightest impropriety.

"Yuan Hong, she probably did not lie; Jiang Liu'er wasn't snatched by her!"

While Bai Jingjing was speaking, Sun Wukong had already examined the flow of energy within her body using the Void-Breaking Starry Eyes and saw no sign of deception. Had she really captured Jiang Liu'er, she would have hurried to relish her prize by now. So why would she come out?

It seemed that Jiang Liu'er must have been abducted by someone else!

"Great Saint, she's a demon; her words can't be trusted!"

Yuan Hong said anxiously. No sooner had the words left his mouth than Sun Wukong's eyes widened, "Yuan Hong, what are you saying? How can the words of a demon not be trusted? Don't forget, you are also from the Demon Clan. Do you really think that by succeeding in the scripture seeking, you could become a Buddha or a patriarch?"

"Please calm your anger, Great Saint; that's not what I meant!"

Seeing Sun Wukong get angry, Yuan Hong immediately panicked and hurriedly explained, "Great Saint, this demon is extremely cunning. She transformed into an ordinary mountaineer twice to deceive the Master, and both times I exposed her. In the White Bone Ridge, if it isn't her, who else could it be?"

"That might not be the case!"

Sun Wukong let out a cold laugh, "There has been a tail following you all along this journey; you just didn't notice it!"

Sun Wukong informed Yuan Hong about the Demon Race's secret scouts tailing them, causing Yuan Hong's eyes to widen in shock: "Demon Race's secret scouts? Great Saint, do you mean Master was abducted by the secret scouts of the Demon Race?"

"Very likely!"

Sun Wukong nodded his head, but inwardly he was blaming himself. He indeed had been careless. Knowing full well that Demon Ancestor Luo Hu was determined to have Jiang Liu'er and would not give up so easily after just a warning, it was certain he would continue to dispatch members of the Demon Race to capture Jiang Liu'er. He ought to have warned Yuan Hong beforehand; now that Jiang Liu'er had been abducted, the situation was considerably troublesome!

In the past life during the Journey to the West to seek scriptures, the third Immeasurable Calamity had just begun, the Myriad Races had not yet returned, and there was no interference from the Demon Race in the westward journey. Although Tang Seng encountered many tribulations along the way, they were all survived without real danger. However, the situation in this lifetime was entirely different.

The agents of the Demon Race acted on orders from Demon Ancestor Luo Hu, caring not whether the gods and Buddhas were pleased. If the secret scouts of the Demon Race were allowed to take Jiang Liu'er back to the Demonic Realm, it would spell certain death for Jiang Liu'er!

"Void-Breaking Starry Eyes!"

With a thought, Sun Wukong activated the Void-Breaking Divine Eye to the Fourth Phase, the level of Void-Breaking Starry Eyes, and looked toward the valley where Jiang Liu'er had last been. Under the Void-Breaking Starry Eyes, a faint golden light appeared, forming a golden thread that stretched far into the distance.

"This fellow Jiang Liu'er is quite clever in this lifetime!"

A smile curled at the corner of Sun Wukong's mouth. This golden light was left by Jiang Liu'er, who cultivated the Immeasurable Merit Determination and condensed a Merit Golden Body, allowing him to spread a unique golden aura of his Merit and Destiny bit by bit. Ordinary people naturally would not notice, but it could not deceive Sun Wukong. He guessed that Jiang Liu'er must have anticipated Sun Wukong's rescue and therefore left a clue when he was abducted.

"I now know where Jiang Liu'er has been taken!"

Sun Wukong took out the Ruyi Golden-Hooped Rod and drew a circle around Bai Jingjing's feet, "Stay in this circle, and I, Old Sun, guarantee your safety! If you dare step out of the circle, I, Old Sun, will not spare you. Do you understand?"

Bai Jingjing nodded repeatedly; how could she dare not listen to Sun Wukong's instructions? For her, attaining the realm of a Taiyi Scattered Immortal was not easy, and who would wish to die if they could live?

"Yuan Hong, come with me to save your master!"

As Sun Wukong spoke, he leaped into the air and boarded the Somersault Cloud, chasing the golden thread he had seen. Yuan Hong also mounted the Somersault Cloud and followed. This Somersault Cloud had been taught to him by Sun Wukong back when he was at the Golden Mountain Temple; now he could use it quite skillfully, and his speed was not much less than that of Sun Wukong's.

Of course, if Sun Wukong were to use Streaming Light Escape and Minor Teleportation, that would be a different story altogether.

They flew swiftly towards the north, crossing the entire Northern Sea, and the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing soon came into view. The golden gleam grew more solid in Sun Wukong's eyes, indicating that Jiang Liu'er must have passed by not long ago and they were close to catching up. However, Sun Wukong's brow started to furrow.

The Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing, it was actually the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing!

The original passageway between the Demonic Realm and the Three Realms was beneath the ground of Flower-Fruit Mountain, which Sun Wukong had already sealed with his methods. The current passageway must have formed recently. To maintain a stable passage between the two realms would be impossible to conceal from the adept individuals around it.

The Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing was already the territory of the Flower-Fruit Mountain Demon Cult, guarded by the Mosquito Daoist and others. The passageway between the two realms being in the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing could not be kept secret from everyone, and Sun Wukong refused to believe that the Mosquito Daoist and his ilk had no inkling of it!

Why hadn't they informed him?

Could it be that some of them have colluded with the Demon Race in secret? Or were they playing both sides, aligning themselves with neither fully?

Sun Wukong's heart sank. If things were indeed as he suspected, the gravity of the situation far outstripped the kidnapping of Jiang Liu'er!

"Great Saint, what's wrong? Did you discover something?"

Seeing Sun Wukong's troubled expression, Yuan Hong felt a stir in his heart and asked.

"Nothing much, we're just about to catch up with the Demon Race spy. Let's speed up a bit!"

Sun Wukong shook his head, suddenly accelerating his movement by deploying Streaming Light Escape, transforming from riding a cloud to becoming a streak of light, hastening away in an instant. Yuan Hong could only exert his mana to its fullest to keep up, lest he be left behind.

Shortly after, Sun Wukong and Yuan Hong flew into the territory of the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing and descended into a dry and hot canyon amidst a cluster of volcanoes.

"It's here, Jiang Liu'er should be just ahead!"

A flash of golden light in Sun Wukong's eyes, he stretched his hand forward and pointed ahead. Yuan Hong looked in the direction pointed, but the canyon seemed empty, with no sign of Jiang Liu'er to be seen, which made him look at Sun Wukong with some bewilderment.

"There's a barrier hiding everything here; we won't be able to see what's inside the valley unless we break the barrier! Damn it, could it really be her?"

Others might not know this place, but Sun Wukong knew it all too well. After the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing joined forces with Flower-Fruit Mountain, he had been invited here. This place was clearly the lair of the Great Witch Jiu Feng, Jiu Feng Mountain!