txolops Chapter 28 First Battle with the Great Sage at Black Wind Mountain
Chapter 28 First Battle with the Great Sage at Black Wind Mountain
The Black Bear Spirit was overjoyed upon hearing this. He carefully folded his cassock, picked up his staff, and said, "In that case, you shall come back to my cave with me. It is already late, so you should rest first. Tomorrow I will send out invitations to all the fellow practitioners of Black Wind Mountain to attend this gathering!"
Li Fa was secretly delighted and hurriedly followed the black bear spirit on a cloud.
Before long, a steep and high mountain came into view, with deep cliffs and dangerous peaks, and clouds rising from the ridge.
The black bear spirit descended from the clouds and led Li Fa to a stone gate with the six large characters "Black Wind Mountain, Black Wind Cave" carved on it.
When the little demons saw their king return, they hurriedly opened the door to greet him.
The black bear spirit instructed, "This is my nephew, Lord Xiong Shan. You must treat him well and not neglect him."
He then said to Li Fa, "Nephew, you may stay here for now. I will go and put the treasure away safely, and we will talk again tomorrow."
Li Fa bowed in thanks and was led by the little demon to a stone chamber to rest.
After the little demon left, he secretly used the Earth Escape technique from the Five Elements Great Escape, silently disappearing into the stone wall to observe the situation inside the cave.
The black bear spirit unfolded the cassock and placed it on a stone platform, then lit candles and examined it closely.
The brocade robe shimmered under the lamplight, truly a Buddhist treasure.
The black bear spirit was mesmerized, muttering, "At the Buddhist Treasure Assembly, I must show them what it's all about!"
Nothing happened that night. The next day, the Black Bear Spirit sent a little demon to summon Li Fa, saying that he wanted to introduce him to a guest.
Li Fa knew that the so-called "guests" must be the two demons, the white-robed scholar and Ling Xuzi, and he began to make plans.
In the original story, both of these monsters were killed by Sun Wukong, so they didn't have much of a chance to show their strength. Their strength was probably only about the same as the real Xiongshan Jun.
I just don't know if there's a reward for these two monsters, otherwise I could really "help" the monkey get rid of these two demons.
As he was pondering this, Li Fa was led to the main hall by the little demon.
Sure enough, the black bear spirit was already dressed in full attire and looked quite heroic.
Upon seeing Li Fa, the black bear spirit said, "Good nephew, come with me to greet our guest!"
Li Fa said, "Shouldn't we be at home when we're receiving guests? Why are you outside?"
The black bear spirit said, "You don't know how beautiful this place is. It's early spring now, and the mountain scenery is just right. Quickly come out with me."
Li Fa agreed, and the two then walked to a grassy slope.
Sure enough, there were two people standing there.
On the left is a Taoist priest, and on the right is a scholar in white robes.
The merit record is also updated at this moment:
[Target for execution: Ling Xuzi (Azure Wolf Spirit)]
[Karma Assessment: C (Monster)]
Success rate of hunting: 95%
Killing it will grant rewards:
[Optional Reward 1: Two Jiazi of Mana from the "Creating Heaven and Earth Technique"]
[Optional Reward 2: Two Immortal Pills Refined by Ling Xuzi]
[Optional Reward 3: Gunfighting (Mastery of Gunplay)]
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[Target for execution: White-robed scholar (White Flower Snake Spirit)]
[Karma Assessment: C (Monster)]
Success rate of hunt: 98%
Killing it will grant rewards:
[Optional Reward 1: Two Jiazi of Mana from the "Creating Heaven and Earth Technique"]
[Optional Reward Two: Proficiency in Poetry]
[Optional Reward 3: Mid-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure - Overturned Water Bowl]
Li Fa looked at the information in the catalog and his heart stirred slightly.
Both monsters were only at the C level, and their rewards were far less than those of the Black Bear Spirit.
Among Ling Xuzi's rewards, Li Fa completely ignored the magical power and elixirs, but the "gunfighting technique" suited him very well.
It's called Gunfighting, but it's actually just about mastering gun techniques.
To be honest, his martial arts skills are still quite rough. If he were to encounter someone skilled in close combat, he might not be able to defeat them.
Li Fa had previously obtained a reward called "Six Harmonies Spear Technique," but he didn't choose it at the time. Now he was hoping to get another martial arts-related reward, and sure enough, it came.
As for the white-robed scholar's reward, the magical power is a standard feature, and the second one, "proficiency in poetry," is rather useless. However, the "overturned water bowl," a mid-grade innate spiritual treasure, sounds quite ingenious.
Although he did not know its specific function, it must be extraordinary since it was a primordial spiritual treasure.
"This snake demon can drop good equipment," Li Fa thought to himself.
Just as Li Fa was pondering this, the scholar in white robes approached with a smile: "Your Majesty, who is this gentleman?"
The black bear spirit put his arm around Li Fa's shoulder: "This is my nephew, Lord Xiong Shan, who just came from the east. Lord Shan, this is Daoist Lingxu, and this is the scholar in white robes; they are both my close friends."
Li Fa bowed respectfully, secretly observing the two demons.
Ling Xuzi, dressed in a gray robe and holding a whisk, certainly had a Taoist air about him; the scholar in white, on the other hand, was refined and cultured, holding a folding fan, and had a scholarly air about him.
"So it's my nephew," the scholar in white said with a smile. "Indeed, you are a handsome and talented man!"
The black bear spirit laughed heartily: "Come on, I've prepared a small banquet on the back mountain today, perfect for enjoying the scenery and discussing philosophy!"
So the four of them went to a grassy slope on the back of the mountain, where a little demon had already laid out fruits and wine. The four of them sat down on the ground.
Beyond the cliff, a sea of clouds surged, and distant mountains were layered with verdant greenery—the scenery was indeed magnificent.
They were talking loudly and casually, while Li Fa just listened.
All I heard them talk about were the methods of setting up cauldrons and furnaces, and refining mercury with sand.
Just as they were getting excited, the Black Bear Spirit laughed and said, "The day after tomorrow is the anniversary of my mother's passing. Would you two gentlemen be so kind as to come and pay your respects?"
The scholar in white said, "I have been celebrating Your Majesty's birthday every year; how could I not come this year?"
The black bear spirit said, "Last night I acquired two treasures, one called the Brocade Buddha Robe and the other called the Nine-Ringed Zen Staff, both of which are very interesting things."
Tomorrow I will hold a grand banquet to celebrate his birthday, inviting officials from all the mountains to join in the festivities. How about we call it the Buddha Treasure Assembly?
Ling Xuzi laughed and said, "Wonderful! Wonderful! Wonderful! I will come to offer my birthday greetings tomorrow and then attend the banquet the day after."
He was laughing and joking when he suddenly heard a thunderous roar from behind him: "You bunch of thieves, give me back my cassock and staff!"
Who else could it be but Sun Wukong!
It turns out that the pilgrim protected Tang Sanzang and burned down the Zen temple, but the next day he found that Jinchi was dead and the Buddhist treasures were missing.
A search was conducted among all the monks and ascetics, and not a single one was found to have stolen from their posts.
Tang Sanzang was furious and sent the spell to curse him. Fortunately, the abbot said that there was a black wind monster in the south of the temple. Only then did Wukong realize that this monster had stolen the Buddhist treasure, so he came to search for it.
The good traveler, upon seeing the four, swung his stick and struck them.
The black bear spirit, with its sharp eyes, instantly transformed into the wind and vanished. Ling Xuzi also departed on a cloud.
Only the scholar in white had no way to move and was about to die under the Great Sage's staff.
Suddenly, Li Fa pulled out a large spear, channeled all his magical power, and used his immense strength to block the blow for the scholar.
Even so, this left him exhausted, weak, and with numb and sore hands and feet.
Upon seeing this, the scholar in white immediately revealed his true form—a white-flowered snake—and ran away.
When Wukong saw someone blocking his way, he flew into a rage and cursed, "You little bastard, if you've got some skill, take another hit from my staff!"
Li Fa gritted his teeth and persevered, thinking, "I absolutely cannot let the white-robed scholar be killed by the monkey, or I'll lose my reward!"
So, steeling himself, he mounted his gun, and the two of them began to fight on the hillside.
All that can be seen is:
The golden monkey wields its mighty cudgel, while the bear brandishes its black gold spear.
One is a true sage nurtured by spiritual roots, the other is a fake mountain lord with supernatural powers.
One wanted to seize the Buddha's treasure and eliminate the mountain monster, while the other wanted to protect the Demon King to safeguard the reward.
The monk's staff rose like a shooting star chasing the moon, while Li Fa's spear shot out like a python turning over.
Where the stick comes, the whistling wind startles even gods and ghosts; where the gun goes, its cold gleam terrifies demons and monsters.
They fought at first on the hillside, but in an instant they were fighting in mid-air.
After fighting for three to five rounds, Li Fa was exhausted.
That's true. This monkey was born of heaven and earth, nourished by the universe, and had eaten peaches of immortality and stolen elixirs. Laozi refined it in his furnace for forty-nine days, making it indestructible and incredibly strong.
Li Fa had only three hundred years of magical power, and his original form's spear skills were not very proficient, so he was no match for Sun Wukong.
In desperation, he fell from the sky, neither transforming into wind nor riding the clouds, but using an earth-遁 (earth-遁 is a type of escape technique) to head directly west.
However, the direction they went was not Black Wind Cave, but White Mist Marsh, the dojo of the White-Robed Scholar!