Journey to the West: Starting with the Hunting of the Three Demons of Twin Fork Ridge

Chapter 80, Five Manor Temples: Tang Sanzang's Night Escape

So the two of them looked at Li Fa together.

Li Fa was inwardly groaning.

Waiting for Zhen Yuanzi to return?

The key point is that his identity as an old friend was made up on the spot. He just relied on knowing some details of the original work to play tricks on Qingfeng and Mingyue and fool them.

If he could revive the ginseng fruit tree now, complete the mission, and then leave, even if Zhen Yuanzi found out, there would be no need for him to cause trouble.

However, if we really wait until Zhen Yuanzi returns, wouldn't we be exposed on the spot?

He glanced at Qingfeng Mingyue, then at Baili Bo, feeling caught in a dilemma, his expression changing repeatedly.

Seeing him hesitate and remain silent, Mingyue assumed he had reservations and quickly said, "Rest assured, Master! My master is extremely loyal and righteous. If you save my family's immortal root, you will be a great benefactor of Wuzhuang Temple. My master will certainly repay you handsomely when he returns! Master, please just tell me what you need!"

Qingfeng also said, "That's right! Since you are an old friend of my master, and now you want to save my immortal root, my master will definitely have a drink and a chat with you to reminisce about the past!"

Hearing the two men repeatedly refer to each other as "old friends" and "old ties," Li Fa felt increasingly bitter.

What past relationship did I have with Zhen Yuanzi?

It was just a pretext used to infiltrate Wuzhuang Temple in order to complete a mission.

After all, when you're out in the world, you give yourself your own identity.

But now that things have come to this point, if he were to refuse again, it would only make him seem guilty and trying to cover something up.

So be it, whether you stick your neck out or not, you'll get stabbed anyway.

Li Fa took a deep breath, forced a smile, and said, "What the two celestial children say is quite right. It was my oversight. That monkey is indeed fierce and unruly. If he were to push me again, even this drop of Three Lights Divine Water would not be enough. In that case, we can only wait for Fellow Daoist Zhenyuan to return before we can cast the spell."

Upon hearing this, Qingfeng and Mingyue were overjoyed and repeatedly kowtowed, saying, "Thank you, Master! Thank you, Master!"

Li Fa waved his hand and said, "No need for formalities. But that Monkey King is currently locked in the front hall, so we must keep a close eye on him and prevent him from escaping and causing further trouble."

Qingfeng said, "Rest assured, Master! We'll go and guard it right away, we won't leave for a moment!"

After they finished speaking, the two left happily.

After the two men had walked away, Baili Bo stepped forward and whispered, "Master, I was too talkative just now..."

Li Fa waved his hand and sighed, "It's not your fault. You're right, I didn't think it through."

Baili retorted, "But just now, when the two boys said they were waiting for Zhenyuan Daxian to return, the Master seemed worried, as if..."

Li Fa then smiled bitterly and said, "Now that things have come to this, I will not hide it from you. The method of reviving the tree is real, but the relationship with Zhenyuan Daxian is fake. If you want to leave, then leave now."

Baili Bobai said, "What are you saying, Master! Do you really think I am an ungrateful person? You first promised to help me take revenge, and then you gave me ginseng fruit. Whether you know Zhenyuan Daxian or not, you are my benefactor."

Li Fa turned to look at him and, seeing his sincere words, felt somewhat moved.

He reached out and helped Baili Bo up, saying, "Get up. I'll have to wait until we get out of here. You don't need to call me 'Master' anymore; we can just call each other brothers."

Baili Bo then stood up and said, "Thank you, Brother!"

Li Fa said, "But for now, you still need to pretend to be my Taoist disciple, and you must not give yourself away."

Baili Bo bowed and said, "Yes, Master!"

Li Fa said, "I don't think that Zhenyuan Daxian is a petty person. If he really saves his tree, he won't do anything to us."

Baili retorted, "Brother is right, that's my opinion too."

After another discussion, the two decided to wait for Zhen Yuanzi to return before making a final decision.

Now, Qingfeng and Mingyue went out the door and came to the main hall, where they started shouting and cursing again.

He continued cursing until late at night, but there was still no sound from inside the house. Only then did he go to eat, and after finishing his meal, he went to guard the palace again.

Tang Sanzang complained to Sun Wukong, "You monkey, you keep getting into trouble! You stole his fruit, so you just put up with his temper and let him scold you a few times. But why did you knock down his tree! If this is the case, even if your father were an official, he wouldn't be able to get through to you."

Sun Wukong said, "Master, stop fooling around. Those servants have all gone to eat. We'll get up as soon as it gets late."

Sha Wujing said, "Brother, all the doors are locked tightly. How can we get through?"

Sun Wukong laughed and said, "Don't worry about it! Don't worry about it! I have my own way."

Pigsy said, "I'm worried because I don't know what to do! You can transform into anything, like a leech, and fly out through the lattice. It's just that we who can't transform are suffering here taking the blame!"

Tang Sanzang said, "If he were to pull such a stunt instead of going out with you and me, I would recite the old sutras, and how would he possibly bear it!"

Upon hearing this, Pigsy was both worried and amused, saying, "Master, what are you talking about? I've only heard of the 'Surangama Sutra,' 'Lotus Sutra,' and 'Diamond Sutra' in Buddhism, but I've never heard of any 'old story' sutra."

Sun Wukong said, "Brother, you don't know, the headband I wear on my head was given to my master by Guanyin Bodhisattva."

My master coaxed me into wearing it, and it became like a tether, impossible to remove. It's called the "Tightening Hoop Mantra".

This is the old saying he used. But if I recite it, I get a headache, hence this method to make things difficult for me. Master, please don't recite it; I will never let you down, and I will get everyone out of here sooner or later.”

As they spoke, the sky grew darker, and the moon rose in the east.

Sun Wukong said in a low voice, "At this moment, all is quiet, and the moon is clearly visible. It's a good time to go."

Bajie lowered his voice and said, "Brother, don't cause trouble. That boy came back after finishing his meal, and the doors are locked. How are we supposed to get out?"

Sun Wukong said, "Watch my skills!"

He transformed himself into a small insect, which crawled out from the crack in the door. Seeing that the two children were still guarding outside the hall, he flew behind them, used an invisibility spell to reveal his true form, and released the sleep-inducing insect from his waist, which flicked onto the children's faces. Qingfeng and Mingyue then fell into a deep sleep.

They quietly went to Li Fa's room, and pulled out two more, slipping them through the window.

Only then did they go back and unlock the door, invite their master out, mount their horses, with Pigsy carrying the load and Sandy guiding the horse, and headed straight for the western road.

They traveled non-stop all night until dawn. Tang Sanzang said, "That monkey almost killed me! Because of your mouth, you kept me up all night!"

Sun Wukong said, "Master, don't just keep complaining. It's getting light, why don't you rest for a while in the woods by the roadside and recharge your energy before continuing your journey?"

The elder had no choice but to dismount and sit down against a pine root as a makeshift meditation bed. Sha Wujing put down his load and took a nap, while Zhu Bajie slept with his head on a stone.

Sun Wukong, however, was quite cunning; watch him leap from tree to tree, playfully grabbing branches. The four of them rested, and that's another story.