Lu Bian: [Daily check-in: Eagle Sorrow Stream.JPG]
Unable to cross Eagle Sorrow Stream, Lu Bian wasn't the least bit troubled.
This was Eagle Sorrow Stream, after all.
It was one of the trials Sun Wukong and Tang Xuanzang encountered on their Journey to the West, and the place where Little White Dragon first appeared.
The mountains were steep and the current swift, but as a scenic attraction, it could easily earn a five-A rating. Even the few photos Lu Bian had casually snapped could serve as desktop wallpapers.
Kakashi Hatake: [The group leader's at Eagle Sorrow Stream? The scenery looks great. Could you start a video call so we can see?]
Lu Bian: [Sure thing.]
Lu Bian started a video call. It was another day of playing "tour guide."
He was in the Journey to the West World, even though the Journey to the West had already ended.
Seeing that it was getting late, Lu Bian found a flat spot beside Eagle Sorrow Stream and camped there. He unloaded the cart from the donkey, let the animal find some grass to eat nearby, lit a bonfire, then caught two fish from the stream, gutted them, and roasted them.
Since he'd been in the water, Lu Bian sat bare-chested beside the bonfire, drying himself off.
As night slowly fell, Lu Bian tethered the donkey to keep the stupid animal from wandering off and getting lost. From time to time, he added more wood to the fire so it wouldn't go out.
Early the next morning, Lu Bian put out the fire, hitched up the donkey cart, and continued along the edge of Eagle Sorrow Stream.
The ravine between the two mountains grew harder and harder to traverse. Lu Bian had made the wrong choice; this had never been a road to begin with.
At last, the donkey cart had to stop. If he wanted to keep following the edge of the stream, he'd have to go on with just himself and the donkey. The two-wheeled cart couldn't make it.
Nothing could stop Lu Bian from making his way to the Great Song.
Though it wasn't the same world, his hometown lay on that same land.
Suddenly, Lu Bian saw a raft drifting down from upstream.
An old man in a straw rain cape expertly steered the raft to the water's edge, then called out to Lu Bian, beckoning him over.
Leading the donkey and cart, Lu Bian made his way down to the water's edge by a winding route.
"Young man, are you trying to get to the other side?"
"I can take you across."
"That would be wonderful."
"But my raft can only carry you and your donkey. You'll have to leave the cart behind."
"I understand."
"There's no way this two-wheeled cart is making it across today," Lu Bian said.
Lu Bian still had plenty of doubts about the boatman's sudden appearance. How had an old man who ferried people across suddenly appeared in this desolate place, with no one around for miles in either direction?
"Are you wondering about me?" the old boatman asked with a smile.
"I'm the Water God of this place. I haven't seen a traveler in nearly a hundred years."
"Yesterday, I saw you stop in front of the stream. I thought you'd turn around and go back the way you came, like the travelers a hundred years ago."
"Oh." Lu Bian nodded.
"Wait, why haven't you seen anyone for over a hundred years?" Lu Bian asked.
"The mountains are high and the waters deep, like a natural moat. Anyone heading east chooses to avoid this place. Though crossing the stream seems to be the shortest route east, it's also the most dangerous."
"Is there danger ahead?"
"Mm, exactly." The Water God smiled and nodded.
"What kind of danger?" Lu Bian asked.
"On the eastern bank of Eagle Sorrow Stream, there are three monsters in the eastern territory. The local mountain gods and earth deities are powerless against them."
The Water God spread his hands, his face troubled.
"So you're kindly taking me across because you want me to become blood food for those three monsters?" Lu Bian clenched his fists.
"Hey, hey! Hero! Don't say that!"
"Your humble old man saw that you were infused with thunder and seemed to be a divine general descended from the Celestial Realm. That's why I wanted to come help you." The Water God spoke to Lu Bian in alarm.
"You mean me?"
Lu Bian pointed at himself in confusion.
"Hero, don't be confused just yet."
"It's nothing unusual for someone to be reincarnated in the mortal world to undergo trials. The awakening of past-life memories also requires an opportunity."
"After facing trials and tribulations, once your merit is complete, everything will become clear."
"..."
Lu Bian scratched his head.
He still wasn't used to this world, this era, or the way these people spoke. It was half-classical and half-modern, and trying to imitate it gave him a headache.
"I understand what you mean."
"You think I can take down those three monsters, right?"
"Absolutely. Easily." Eagle Sorrow Stream Water Deity stared at Lu Bian with shining eyes.
Lu Bian pondered.
The old Water God was saying he was infused with thunder. He must have meant the Ultimate Boundless Qigong he cultivated.
Right now, he could unleash the power of three Heavens at full strength.
"Heavens" was another way of describing Magnetic Rotation's power levels. It could also be called Magnetic Rotation: thirty thousand units of power.
Since cultivating Magnetic Rotation was difficult, "Heavens" was used to describe the arduousness of the training.
The highest realm of Magnetic Rotation was ninety-nine Heavens of power. Just hearing that sounded incredibly mighty!
"No, Water God, you need to explain everything clearly to me."
"What abilities do the three monsters across the way have? What are their identities, and what backing do they have?" Lu Bian glared at the Water God.
"Of the three monsters, one is called General Yin, another Lord Bear Mountain, and the last Master Te. They're a Tiger Demon, a Bear Monster, and an Ox Spirit, respectively."
"They have no special identities or backing, but they were already active back in the Former Tang. They used to wreak havoc along the borders of the Great Tang, and I heard they even ate two of the Pilgrim's companions."
"What?"
Hearing Eagle Sorrow Stream Water God explain it like that, Lu Bian began to remember something.
"After those three monsters, are there any other monsters further east?" Lu Bian continued asking.
"There aren't any others."
"The Former Tang expanded its territory, pushing the Great Tang's borders hundreds of miles farther out. Once you pass through the land ravaged by those three monsters, you'll reach the Great Song, which inherited the Former Tang." The Water God replied.
"I see. Were those three monsters driven into the territory across the way by the Former Tang's expeditionary army?" Lu Bian thought for a moment and asked.
"Probably? That must be it. Your humble old man doesn't really know the details."
"..."
"To be safe, I'll cultivate on the western bank for three months before crossing," Lu Bian said. "Though three months may not be enough. To be even more cautious, I'll deal with them in three years."
"..." The Water God was at a loss for words.
Did he really need to be that cautious?
He'd heard from the Earth Deity in the west that the hero before him had fists that crackled with lightning, and had beaten a Tiger Demon to death in just a few punches.
"Three months is enough, three months is enough!!" the Water God shouted at Lu Bian.
"I don't believe you."
"There are three monsters over there, and I'm only one person."
"Two fists can't beat four hands, let alone six." Lu Bian objected.
"Besides, each of those three monsters has at least three hundred years of cultivation. I don't want to die."
"Old Water God, is there a decent place to stay around here? I'll build a house first."
"I'll have someone show you."
The Water God tapped the ground with the long pole he used to steer the raft and called out, "Earth Deity, Earth Deity, come on out~!"
"I know you're watching!"
The Water God summoned the Earth Deity of Shepan Mountain.
"Hey! I'm right here! You can stop calling."
Before you continue