After hearing Gungun say he had suffered a nightmare in which Eastern Emperor Taiyi beat him to death, then listening to that whole string of inner thoughts, Houtu's expression darkened visibly.
Underworld. This was not the first time she had heard that word, but she still had no idea what sort of place it was or why Gungun was so eager to move there. But!
She understood perfectly well when this big fat bear said she was blowing hot air, that she was a million years too early to attain the Dao, and that he would change his name if she did.
So this fatty was itching for a beating!
Bam! Houtu flashed behind Gungun, raised her leg, and planted a kick squarely on his backside.
"Aaaah!" Poor Gungun did not even have time to react before Houtu sent him flying, turning him into a shooting star that vanished over the horizon.
"Hmph, that rascal!" Having kicked the big fat bear, Houtu vented all the anger in her heart. As it happened, she had yet to settle the score with him for fooling her and playing with her feelings when he put on that act before Ao Yue a few months ago. Today's kick would settle both accounts.
But...
What is this Eastern Azure Flower Great Emperor? He wants to become that? After lowering her leg, Houtu knitted her brows slightly in puzzlement.
Meanwhile, a sharp pain shot through Gungun's backside, and the next instant he was hurtling through the clouds. He screamed in fright, then quickly realized what had happened. Damn it, Houtu had kicked him into the sky!
Well played, Houtu! Blowing hot air and toying with my feelings weren't enough for you-you had to kick me too! This is going too far. This mighty god is getting angry!
Gungun immediately summoned his power and stopped his forward flight. Then, waving both arms, he turned around in midair as though swimming and prepared to fly back to Mount Buzhou the way he had come. However...
Bzzzt! A sudden flash of golden light passed before his eyes, and a handsome young man in white appeared before him, sitting cross-legged on a golden cloud.
"Hahaha, the east truly is a land rich in nature's treasures, where gifted souls spring from blessed soil. To think this humble monk would meet a fellow Daoist with whom I share a karmic bond so soon after arriving!" The young man looked at Gungun and laughed heartily.
"Huh?" Finding his path suddenly blocked and hearing those words, Gungun frowned and asked the newcomer, "Brother, who are you?"
"Brother? A fine way to address me! It makes us sound all the closer! This humble Daoist is Zhunti, from the Western Pure Land World. Fellow Daoist, you share a karmic bond with me. Would you be willing to accompany me west for ascetic cultivation?" At Gungun's form of address, the young man first paused, then smiled even more broadly and extended his invitation.
Gungun: "..."
Heavens, what did I just hear? Who did he say he was?
Zhunti?!
Seeing Gungun freeze upon hearing his name, Zhunti smiled with restrained satisfaction, not surprised in the slightest.
Although he had yet to become a Saint, the Dao Ancestor had said that both he and his senior brother, Daoist Jieyin, could attain Sainthood in the future. Faced with an invitation from a future Saint, surely no creature in the Primordial World could remain unmoved.
Still, astonishment was one thing; to win someone over, he needed to offer something worthwhile as a show of sincerity. After all, an Iron-Eating Beast in the middle stage of the great immortal realm, with... Good heavens, he's actually the very first Iron-Eating Beast born between heaven and earth, and he possesses such tremendous blessed fortune! The west is sorely lacking in talent of this bearish caliber!
Zhunti hurriedly opened his right hand, revealing a bamboo shoot, then sent it floating toward Gungun. Smiling, he said, "Fellow Daoist, I have a magical treasure called the Six Roots Purification Bamboo, which I refined from the primordial spiritual root, bitter bamboo. I imagine the shoots it produces would suit you perfectly. If you do not mind, why not have a taste?"
"Uh..." Hearing Zhunti's words, Gungun came back to his senses and stared at the food floating before him, identical to the bamboo shoots in the fruit basket Ao Yue had given him.
Gungun swallowed, then looked back at Zhunti. He hesitated for a tenth of a second before... flopping down in a full prostration, his entire bearish body sprawled on the cloud. Respectfully, he said, "This little bear, Gungun, pays his respects to... Great Sage Zhunti."
He had meant to call him a Saint, but Zhunti was not one yet. Addressing him that way might get him struck by lightning, while calling him a Daoist seemed insufficiently respectful. So Gungun simply called him a Great Sage.
Didn't all those Demon Sages of the Demon Race style themselves Great Sages? Even that monkey Sun would one day call himself the Great Sage Equal to Heaven. Since Zhunti was currently a quasi-saint, calling him a Great Sage should be perfectly fine.
"Hahaha, fellow Daoist, do get up. There is no need for such ceremony." Seeing Gungun behave so courteously that he immediately knelt... no, sprawled before him, Zhunti blinked and made a lifting gesture toward him as he spoke.
Though it was merely a gesture, Gungun's body rose to its feet against his will.
"Thank you, Great Sage Zhunti." Once upright, Gungun stood on the cloud with his head lowered, looking exceedingly respectful.
After all, this man was different from powerful figures like Kunpeng and Ao Yue. This man... would become a Saint!
Even if he was not a Saint yet, he was still a quasi-saint who had severed the Three Corpses. How could an adorable little great immortal like Gungun be anything but respectful before him?
As for accepting his invitation and accompanying him west for ascetic cultivation...
Oh, please. He said it himself-ascetic cultivation! With my soft skin and tender flesh, how could I endure hardship?
Had Zhunti invited him when the Journey to the West began, Gungun would have been delighted to go. But right now, aside from spiritual treasures like the Twelfth-Grade Merit Golden Lotus and the Six Roots Purification Bamboo, which they could never bestow on anyone else, what good things did they have?
They haven't even founded their religion yet, and they've only got a scant handful of followers. I was born for wealth and comfort. There's no way I'm going off to suffer with you.
Later. Maybe later. Once your side is flourishing and you need a Lord Buddha, come find me. I'll definitely head over then~
"Fellow Daoist Gungun, why not taste this bamboo shoot?" Seeing that Gungun had not reached for the shoot after getting up, Zhunti frowned almost imperceptibly, then asked with a smile.
"This little bear ought not decline a gift from Great Sage Zhunti, but Ancestral Witch Houtu taught me that one must not accept rewards without merit. Thus, this little bear dares not accept it," Gungun answered solemnly, putting on an erudite air.
"Ancestral Witch Houtu?" Zhunti was puzzled. What did this have to do with Houtu? And "one must not accept rewards without merit"-was that really something Houtu would say?
He was just about to count on his fingers to divine the answer...
"Senior Brother Zhunti!" Houtu's voice suddenly rang out, and as her words fell, she appeared beside Gungun.
"Lady Ancestral Witch." Seeing Houtu arrive, Gungun hurriedly clung to her leg and hid behind her, putting on a terrified expression.
Truth be told, Gungun did not dislike Zhunti. He even admired him somewhat. The man's skin was thick enough to resemble his own. But this pauper actually wanted to overestimate his means and take Gungun home to raise him. That was going too far.
I'm a national treasure. Are you sure you can afford to keep me?
Before you continue