The Jade Emperor was quite injured. These brats were determined to rub his face in the dirt!
The critical point was that the Jade Emperor had no recourse. If he dared to show even a sliver of his authority as the Lord of the Three Realms, these fellows would threaten to ascend and report him to his former leader. How could he possibly manage this?
With a mere wave of his hand, the Jade Emperor departed, leaving no trace behind!
Seeing the Jade Emperor leave so abruptly, Di Xin chuckled. This Jade Emperor was truly amusing. He still wanted to display his kingly aura? That was a joke. Did he really think they were all incompetent?
At this moment, in the mortal realm, Tang Sanzang and his disciples had been traveling for over a year. During this time, various minor demons had met their unfortunate end. Their cultivation was subpar, and they dared to covet Tang Sanzang's flesh. Naturally, they wouldn't fare well!
"Brother Monkey, there are so many rabbits ahead. How about we have a feast tonight?" Zhu Bajie whispered to Sun Wukong!
After all, they were ascetics who were supposed to eat vegetarian food. Tang Sanzang would never permit such actions.
Thus, Zhu Bajie spoke softly to Sun Wukong, planning to sneak out later. He figured Tang Sanzang would be none the wiser.
Sun Wukong's eyes twinkled. Indeed, with so many rabbits around, they could have a feast tonight. He nodded subtly.
Zhu Bajie rejoiced, realizing he'd have meat to eat that night!
They arrived at a dilapidated temple. It was unclear who was worshipped there, as the statue depicted a stranger with long ears. Tang Sanzang offered a prayer, as they intended to seek shelter for the night. At this point, Sun Wukong said, "Master, please rest here for a moment. I'll go scout the vicinity for something to eat!"
Tang Sanzang nodded and smiled, "Wukong, there's no need to force it if there's nothing. I still have two flatbreads; they'll suffice!"
Sun Wukong grunted and went out. At this moment, Zhu Bajie also said, "Master, I'll go take a look too!"
With that, he darted away.
Tang Sanzang was a bit puzzled. He knew that this Pig Wuneng was usually quite lazy, yet today he was so proactive. He didn't think much of it.
As expected, when Zhu Bajie found Sun Wukong, he was already starting a fire for roasting. He had also plucked and cleaned two rabbits.
Zhu Bajie chuckled, took the rabbits, and began to roast them, turning them constantly. "Brother Monkey, let Old Pig do this this time!"
As he spoke, he pulled out a small paper packet from his robes, containing some salt. He had hidden it while begging for alms.
Sprinkling it on now would be just right!
Just as the two were eating the roasted rabbits, the eyes of the statue in the temple suddenly lit up, emitting waves of red light. Upon seeing Tang Sanzang, a gust of wind arose outside and swept Tang Sanzang away. He was instantly gone!
Sha Wujing was greatly alarmed and quickly gave chase. However, the wind was too fast for him to catch up. He could only shout, "Eldest Brother, Second Brother, something terrible has happened! Master has been captured!"
At Sha Wujing's urgent cry, Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie heard him and immediately dropped the rabbits and ran back.
Upon seeing that Tang Sanzang was gone, Sun Wukong angrily rebuked, "Junior Brother Sha, how were you watching Master?"
Sha Wujing was also very wronged. A gust of wind blew, and their master vanished. He was helpless. It must have been a demon with formidable magical powers!
Hearing Sha Wujing's account, Sun Wukong examined the residual traces. After a moment's thought, he stomped his foot on the ground, and a small old man emerged. Sun Wukong immediately asked, "Old Earth Deity, are there any malevolent spirits here?"
The Earth Deity saw Sun Wukong and immediately prostrated himself, saying, "Greetings, Great Sage. This is Clear Cold Mountain. There is an immortal being in the mountain named Chang Er Ding Guang Xian. As for malevolent spirits, there should be none!"
Sun Wukong nodded and sent the Earth Deity back. He then looked at the statue behind them, clearly realizing this was the culprit.
At this point, Zhu Bajie quickly said, "Brother Monkey, I've heard of this Chang Er Ding Guang Xian. He was one of the Seven Immortals of Attendance we encountered earlier. But for some reason, he was later expelled. I never expected to meet him here!"
Sun Wukong was taken aback. He recalled that the Wu Yun Xian they had met then was also one of the Seven Immortals of Attendance, possessing immense power. He never imagined there was another one here!
"Regardless, let's go confront him!" Sun Wukong declared. If that didn't work, he would seek out the Immortals of the Jie Sect; they should have a solution!
At this moment, on the summit of Clear Cold Mountain, there was a cave dwelling where Chang Er Ding Guang Xian resided. He had no choice. Since Tongtian rejected him, he could only cultivate here. He never expected to encounter Tang Sanzang today! He had heard the rumors about Tang Sanzang. Eating Tang Sanzang's flesh could grant eternal life, indicating that Tang Sanzang was a person blessed with great fortune. As for eternal life itself, he didn't care. After all, he was already a Grand Unity Golden Immortal, and under normal circumstances, he wouldn't die. However, after reaching the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm, he could no longer progress, as his aptitudes were limited. Furthermore, he lacked fortune. Originally, Buddhism had promised to take him in, but the Two Sages of the West departed too early, and their arrangements naturally fell through. Later, Randeng took charge, but that fellow disliked him. There was nothing he could do. Chang Er Ding Guang Xian didn't want to endure humiliation, so he simply settled on Clear Cold Mountain!
Now that he had captured Tang Sanzang, truthfully, Chang Er Ding Guang Xian wanted to see if eating Tang Sanzang would help his cultivation!
"You, hurry and start a fire. Boil this Tang Sanzang for me!" Chang Er Ding Guang Xian immediately commanded. Two rabbit demons scurried off to prepare.
At this moment, Sun Wukong arrived with Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing. Glancing at the cave dwelling, Sun Wukong scoffed; it looked rather shabby!
He shouted, "Chang Er, you thief immortal, return my master!"
Chang Er Ding Guang Xian abruptly stood up and rushed out of the cave. Upon seeing Sun Wukong, he disdainfully said, "Dead monkey, I know you. Let me tell you, I've already eaten Tang Sanzang. Go back where you came from!"
Sun Wukong became furious and immediately drew his Ruyi Jingu Bang, attacking. Chang Er Ding Guang Xian took out a large staff to meet him. This staff was merely a mortal artifact, as he had not obtained any spiritual treasures during his time in the Jie Sect!
Immediately, they engaged in a fierce battle. Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing seized the opportunity to enter the cave dwelling, directly slaying the rabbit demons within and rescuing Tang Sanzang!
Chang Er Ding Guang Xian, fighting with Sun Wukong, saw this and became enraged. However, with his cultivation, he couldn't defeat Sun Wukong. This was truly outrageous!
Although he had learned the authentic Daoist techniques of Shangqing, Sun Wukong possessed innate divine strength coupled with the Eight-Nine Arcane Art. He was not much inferior to him!
Thus, the two fought to a standstill, with Chang Er Ding Guang Xian gradually showing signs of being at a disadvantage. After all, this monkey seemed to grow stronger with each passing moment!
Chang Er Ding Guang Xian was extremely vexed. It was truly a case of a fallen dragon being bullied by dogs. Damn it, if he had a spiritual treasure, this monkey would be no match for him!
Thinking of this, Chang Er Ding Guang Xian transformed into a stream of light and fled. There was no need to continue fighting. If the fight went on, he might even suffer losses in the end!