In the Western Paradise of the Western Heaven stood the Great Thunderclap Temple.
Tathagata expounded the great Dharma and preached true attainment, teaching the Three-Vehicle Canon and the Five Aggregates Śūraṅgama. Heavenly dragons circled him, flowers rained down in dazzling profusion, and sacred relics shone with light. Forty-two white rainbows filled the sky, with North-South Rainbow spanning north to south.
The three thousand All Buddhas, five hundred arhats, eight great vajra guardians, and countless bodhisattvas stood arrayed in the immortal realm of Spirit Mountain, each bearing banners, jeweled canopies, rare treasures, and immortal flowers.
When the scripture sermon ended, Tathagata's disciple Ananda rose and said:
"World-Honored One, yesterday the dragon serving as Bell Keeper, Ao Tu, the Jing River Dragon King's fifth son, neglected his duties and missed the appointed hour. He deserves punishment."
Tathagata said, "Is Ao Tu present?"
A figure stepped out from among the monks. He looked like a young man, with dragon horns on his head and bright golden eyes. It was Ao Tu.
"Your disciple Ao Tu pays his respects to the World-Honored One."
Tathagata said, "Is what Ananda said true?"
Ao Tu said, "It is not. Yesterday, Venerable Ananda deliberately cast a spell to put me to sleep, causing me to miss the appointed hour as Bell Keeper. He then used that as leverage to demand that I descend to the mortal realm and obstruct the Pilgrim. When I refused, Venerable Ananda reported me today."
Seated high upon his lotus throne, Tathagata showed not the slightest change in expression. "Did you, as Bell Keeper, miss the appointed hour?"
Ao Tu said, "I did."
Tathagata said, "Then your punishment shall be Three Thousand Incense Boards."
Ao Tu stressed, "I only missed the appointed hour as Bell Keeper because Venerable Ananda cast a spell on me."
Tathagata said, "Ananda will receive his own punishment."
At those words, Ao Tu drew a deep breath, closed his eyes, and said nothing more.
He was a transmigrator who had arrived in this world as Ao Tu, the Jing River Dragon King's fifth son. His father, the Jing River Dragon King, had been schemed against and killed. With nowhere to go, he and his brothers had eventually been assigned posts through the arrangements of their uncle, the West Sea Dragon King.
Some took posts in rivers, some guarded palaces in the celestial court, and some watched over the Jade Emperor's Sky-Supporting Huabiao. Steady by nature, Ao Tu had been assigned to serve as Bell Keeper for the Buddha in the Western Heaven.
As a transmigrator, he actually had a system.
[Journey to the West Obstructor System] [Starter gift pack: true dragon essence blood (issued)] [Main quest: Journey-to-the-West Roadblocker (not unlocked; unlocks upon entering the great tribulation of the Journey to the West)] [Objective: obstruct the Pilgrim and prevent Buddhism's rise to greatness.] [Reward: calculated according to the duration of the obstruction.]
Ao Tu had originally had no intention of using this system.
To unlock its quest, he would have to take part in the great tribulation of the Journey to the West. Within a great tribulation, heaven's secrets were obscured; the slightest misstep could leave him dead and his cultivation extinguished. Nor had the system specified what rewards it offered.
He was of the Dragon Race, blessed with a long lifespan. His days in the Western Heaven were safe and peaceful, and his cultivation improved daily. There was absolutely no need to risk entering the great tribulation.
Yet fate made a plaything of men. The system's starter gift pack contained a drop of true dragon essence blood. Ao Tu's true form was a Four-Clawed Yellow Dragon. Although his bloodline was close to that of a Five-Clawed True Dragon, it was impure, and this drop of essence blood would benefit him enormously.
Unable to resist the temptation, Ao Tu had absorbed the essence blood and broken through from the late Celestial Immortal stage to the Profound Immortal realm.
The original Ao Tu had only been a Celestial Immortal, too weak to qualify for participation in the great tribulation. But after his breakthrough to Profound Immortal, he could rely on the Dragon Race's Innate Supernatural Ability and was no longer weak. In the water, he was strong enough to give Sun Wukong a fight.
And so Ananda had set his sights on Ao Tu.
Ananda had plotted to send him down to the mortal realm to serve as a trial for the pilgrimage. Then he would appear and subdue Ao Tu, earning merit in the process.
Before you continue