txolops 045. Entering White Tiger Ridge
045. Entering White Tiger Ridge
Let's return to the story of the veteran.
He walked into White Tiger Ridge with his knife in hand, but to his surprise, the place was not at all as desolate as it had been before.
With the arrival of people from all walks of life, the locals who settled there actually developed the area.
Many long-time residents came forward:
"Are all the thirty-odd new arrivals here?"
An old man dressed in tattered clothes stepped out from among the people.
The old man, leaning on his cane, looked at the veteran and asked.
The veteran was taken aback, not expecting the old man to be asking him a question.
He had come to exorcise demons and monsters, so he had no idea how many people were involved and immediately shook his head.
"What the old man said is true. All thirty-two people in our village are here."
A young man walked up from behind and said to the old man.
Despite being a young man, he looked much older than his age, with a hunched back and a very tired appearance.
The old man thought for a moment and said to the young man:
"You are new here, and we can only provide you with lodging and a little food. The rest you have to rely on yourselves."
Upon hearing the old man's words, the young man's face showed an expression of utter disbelief.
He spoke in astonishment, repeating:
"Does it provide accommodation and food?"
Baoxiang Kingdom, being a small country, was not a wealthy place.
The people of this place not only live a life exploited by the upper-class nobles, but also have to worry about demons and evil spirits all the time.
The reason they came to this place was because they could no longer survive in their original place, so they came to White Tiger Ridge with their last hope.
Now it seems that something has really changed at White Tiger Ridge?
Soon, the veteran saw that, led by the old man, these newly arrived villagers were given food, water, and shelter.
"Why don't you live outside the mountains? It's too dangerous in these mountains!"
The veteran stepped forward and grabbed the old man's hand.
Not to mention the Corpse Demon, the wild beasts in White Tiger Ridge are everywhere.
Although the common people were not unarmed, they were no match for so many wild beasts and would only be divided and eaten.
"Don't worry, with the Mountain Goddess here, we are perfectly safe."
Upon hearing this, the old man laughed heartily.
He seemed to have heard this kind of talk too many times, and at this moment he just waved his hand casually.
"Mountain Goddess".
The veteran persisted, asking, "Just who exactly is this Mountain Goddess?"
"Who is she? The Mountain Goddess is naturally a deity."
The old man looked at the veteran with disdain.
I've already said she's a mountain goddess, how could she possibly be human?
The veteran realized he had said something foolish, and he quickly waved his hand:
"I just want to know, what's going on with this mountain goddess, and where did the corpse demon go?"
Upon hearing this, the old man scratched his head and said:
"The Mountain Goddess is not hard to find; she will appear when you encounter trouble in the mountains. As for the Corpse Demon, I don't know, but the Mountain Goddess said that the Corpse Demon is already dead."
"Is this mountain goddess a young woman carrying a lunchbox?"
The veteran pressed for an answer.
He became increasingly convinced that the mountain goddess was not a good person, but must be a corpse demon in disguise.
"That's just one of the forms of the Mountain Goddess."
The old man had seen the Mountain Goddess several times.
As he spoke, he pointed to a house not far away:
"These houses were originally built for us by the Mountain Goddess; otherwise, we would have frozen to death long ago."
The old man pointed again to the meat hanging not far away:
"These meats were originally sent by the Mountain Goddess; otherwise, we would have starved to death long ago."
As he spoke, the old man glanced at the stream not far away:
"This stream was also dug by the Mountain Goddess; otherwise, we would have died of thirst long ago."
This whole explanation left the veteran completely bewildered.
Based on these three things, it seems that this mountain goddess really is trying to help them?
If the only purpose was to eat people, then there would be no need for all this food delivery and river digging.
"As long as you don't go into the innermost part of White Tiger Ridge, the Mountain Goddess won't interfere with you. Of course, the Mountain Goddess also won't allow evil people to harm others."
As he spoke, the old man raised his hand and pointed to a spot not far away.
The veteran followed the finger in confusion, looking in that direction.
The veteran's expression changed drastically the next moment.
On a large tree not far away, a kite-like object was hanging from a specially sharpened part.
He couldn't see those things clearly, but a memory rushed into his mind, instantly making him realize what they were.
"Human! Human skin!"
The veteran was horrified.
His legs went weak and he almost fell to the ground.
Seeing that the old man was still smiling, the veteran quickly reached out and grabbed his arm, saying in a trembling voice:
"Old man, sir, quick! Run!"
Now he was certain that only a Corpse Demon could use such terrifying methods to deal with its enemies.
There is no such thing as a mountain goddess; there are only corpse demons pretending to be mountain goddesses.
Then everyone in the entire White Tiger Ridge will be eaten and skinned by the Mountain Goddess!
"Old man, I want to go in and take a look."
The veteran gritted his teeth and stood up.
The old man stared blankly at the veteran, who had a knife at his waist and didn't look like a good person.
But he doesn't seem like a bad person either.
"oh oh."
The old man had no choice but to nod.
Having received confirmation, the veteran struggled to his feet and, gripping the hilt of his sword, walked deeper into White Tiger Ridge.
The veteran mustered his courage and walked step by step toward White Tiger Ridge.
......
Meanwhile, Xuanzang and his disciples soon came upon a tall mountain.
Upon reaching Saga, Xuanzang said:
"Wukong, I'm hungry today. Where can you go to beg for some food?"
This was said to Sun Wukong.
In the past, Xuanzang would not have dared to speak to the monkey like that; at most, he would have asked, "Wukong, I am hungry, could you please beg for some food?"
Asking that question usually results in sarcastic or ambiguous responses.
There was a response today, but it was only Wukong offering a forced smile:
"Master, please refrain from speaking. I know you are proud and arrogant, and if I offend you, I will recite that mantra. Dismount and sit still while I go to find a place where people can beg for alms."
Sun Wukong leaped onto the cloud, the golden headband on his head gleaming brightly.
Xuanzang snorted coldly and dismounted from his horse.
"Now that we have the golden headband, we can finally teach this monkey some manners."
Looking at the golden headband on Sun Wukong's head, a hint of lingering fear flashed in the eyes of the Yellow Wind King.
He knew very well that when they were at Longevity Mountain, the Bodhisattva had only called Sun Wukong away and said something, but when they returned, the golden headband appeared on Sun Wukong's head.
If it weren't for that bluish-black complexion, King Huangfeng might have even thought for a moment that Sun Qiong had arrived.
However, he soon realized that this monkey, like Sun Qiong, was controlled by Buddhism.
Sure enough, after Sun Wukong put on the golden headband, his words and actions were no longer the same as before. He was either arguing with Xuanzang or Zhu Bajie every day.
Now, with Xuanzang gripping the headband, the monkey has no way to do anything about it.
If Guanyin Bodhisattva had agreed to let him join the pilgrimage team when he was on Mount Luojia, then he would probably be the one wearing the golden headband now.
When Sun Qiong captured Manjushri Bodhisattva, he was tormented half to death by the Bodhisattva's single thought.
He frantically tried to find a way to get rid of the golden headband on his head.
If he were to wear that thing, he would probably end up like Sun Qiong and Sun Wukong.
The thought of it made him tremble uncontrollably.
Sun Wukong, carrying his alms bowl, leaped up in auspicious light. You can see him swaying and tumbling, with a chilling aura emanating from him. In a short while, he rushed to the South Mountain to pick peaches, but that's another story.
At this moment, Xuanzang and his companions put down their luggage and found a place to sit down.
Just then, a rustling sound came from the woods.
"What happened?"
Xuanzang was startled and immediately hid behind the Yellow Wind King.
Pigsy, also holding his nine-toothed rake, followed beside Xuanzang.
"This wind smells a bit fishy."
King Yellow Wind frowned, caught a wisp of wind, and gently sniffed it.
The fishy smell means that this mountain is not ordinary; there may be man-eating monsters inside.
Although King Huangfeng dared not believe in the Bodhisattva, he still had to protect Jin Chanzi, the Buddha's second disciple.
It's not just about past life connections, but more importantly, it's about the Buddha.
Just then, an old man, covered in filth and carrying a knife, burst out of the woods.
The old man gripped his long knife and shouted:
"Corpse Demon, I will expose your true colors!"