Slaying demons at Gao Village

After the system issued its rewards, the rewarded spell, the Art of Moving Mountains, appeared directly in Ao Tu's mind, its principles fully mastered.

Ao Tu formed a hand seal and recited an incantation, lifting a small mountain with his magic. However, this spell could only move smaller mountains; it could not shift great, renowned peaks such as Mount Tai or Mount Hua.

Still, that was already quite good. It was an extremely practical spell.

As for the Sixth-Turn Golden Elixir and the True Dragon Pearl, those rewards appeared directly in Ao Tu's hands.

The Sixth-Turn Golden Elixir shone a brilliant gold, radiant and lustrous, brimming with elixir clouds and a thousand streams of auspicious energy.

If a mortal swallowed it, they would become an immortal on the spot, gaining eternal youth and longevity. Ao Tu was a Profound Immortal, so its effects would not be as dramatic for him, but it would still greatly advance his cultivation, saving him untold years of arduous work. It was a truly rare immortal elixir.

Without hesitation, Ao Tu swallowed the Sixth-Turn Golden Elixir whole and refined it within his belly. His cultivation soared, breaking straight through from the early Profound Immortal stage to the Mid-Profound Immortal stage. He had not even fully refined its medicinal power yet; once he did, it would likely help him reach the Late-Profound Immortal stage.

Ao Tu then examined the True Dragon Pearl.

It was a bright golden dragon pearl. Judging by its aura, it had been left behind by a true dragon at the Golden Immortal level. Laws flowed within the pearl, which contained the embryonic form of a small world and boundless magical power.

The more Ao Tu looked at it, the more he liked it. This Golden Immortal-level dragon pearl would not only help him quickly break through to the Golden Immortal realm, but could also unleash an attack equivalent to that of a Golden Immortal if he hurled it at an enemy. Its benefits were immense.

Ao Tu swallowed the dragon pearl, storing it in his belly, then flew toward Gao Village.

It was time to prepare his next scheme.

Ao Tu had already figured out how to obstruct Tang Sanzang and his disciples at Gao Village. Counting the twelve extra days of progress he had gained at Guanyin Monastery, he was very confident that he could reach thirty days this time and claim the reward for a month-long interception.

But while Ao Tu was flying toward Gao Village, more than a dozen figures suddenly appeared ahead.

Every one of those figures was hideously ugly, with red skin, flames rising from their heads, bodies twenty feet tall, and a pair of wings on their backs. One eye sat atop the head and the other on the chin; one nostril pointed skyward and the other toward the earth; one ear was in front and the other behind. With human bodies and beast heads, some ox-headed and others horse-faced, they flew through the air carrying steel forks. These were yakshas, the foremost fighting force among the Eight Legions of Buddhism.

"Ao Tu, you missed your appointed Bell Keeper hour and fled to the lower realm without permission. We have come to capture you on Venerable Ananda's orders!"

With that, the yakshas charged at Ao Tu.

Ao Tu could not fathom what medicine Ananda was selling in his gourd. Ananda himself had sent him down to obstruct Tang Sanzang's pilgrimage, so why had he now sent yakshas to capture him?

But these yakshas had low cultivation. Only their leader was a Heavenly Immortal; the rest were Earth Immortals, and two had only just taken form. He could wipe them out with a turn of his hand.

Ao Tu revealed his true form, becoming a four-clawed yellow dragon. Opening his enormous jaws, he spat out a blaze of fine golden rays, their cutting edge filling the sky. They struck the yakshas, and blood immediately sprayed through the air. Their shattered corpses fell from the heavens in pieces.

Ao Tu carried the bloodline of a golden dragon, but its impurity caused him to take the form of a yellow dragon instead. He was born with a breath of sharp metal energy, which could scour all things of life when unleashed. Anyone struck by it would be destroyed in body and soul, with scarcely an intact corpse left behind.

After the rays passed, only the Heavenly Immortal-level leader remained alive among the dozen or so yakshas. Covered in blood, his aura feeble, he fled backward and cried in panic:

"Demon dragon! For committing such atrocities, the Buddha will never spare you!"

Ao Tu did not care in the slightest. He had once devoted himself wholeheartedly to serving as Bell Keeper and venerating the Buddha, yet had the Buddha spared him then?

He was about to give chase and kill the yaksha when a beam of glazed light suddenly descended from the sky, shining on the fleeing yaksha and freezing him in place.

Ao Tu immediately found the sight all too familiar. He had been immobilized in precisely this way while serving as Bell Keeper, causing him to miss the appointed hour.

Sure enough, Ananda's figure appeared in the air moments later, surrounded by Buddhist light, his feet resting on a golden lotus. He held a Glazed Bowl, from which the glazed light emanated.

At the sight, Ao Tu quietly brought the dragon pearl into his mouth and watched Ananda warily.

Ananda said, "What are you waiting for? Make your move."

Ao Tu asked, "What do you mean?"

Ananda said, "You little dragon are truly foolish. I was commanded by the Buddha to subdue you. Without a few more casualties along the way, how could my arduous service and great merit be made apparent? I have no desire to stain myself with the karma of killing. Hurry up and do it. Stop delaying."

Hearing this, Ao Tu could not help inwardly shaking his head on behalf of the yaksha race. He sent out another ray of golden light and killed the immobilized yaksha.

Only then did Ananda put away his treasure. Looking at Ao Tu, he praised him:

"Excellent, excellent. I heard that you devised a scheme to frame the Pilgrim, adding an ordeal of imprisonment to his journey. You handled that very well!"

Ananda took a golden flower from his robes and said, "Consider this your reward. Since you have some ability, add a few more ordeals-the more, the better."

Golden flowers were fairly common Buddhist treasures. Consuming one could improve cultivation somewhat, with effects slightly better than those of ordinary elixirs.

Yet Ao Tu was puzzled.

During a great tribulation, heaven's secrets were obscured. Even sages could not discern the full picture, so how had Ananda learned so quickly that he was responsible?

While he was still wondering, Ananda explained the reason himself.

Ananda said, "You did well this time, but you were not thorough enough. After Guangzhi and Guangmou reached the realm of the dead, they pleaded their grievances and filed a complaint against me, causing considerable trouble. Next time, swallow their souls directly to prevent complications. Otherwise, if the matter is exposed, I will not protect you!"

Only then did Ao Tu understand where the problem lay.

So Guangzhi's and Guangmou's souls had filed a complaint against Ananda in the realm of the dead.

Those two truly were fearless in their ignorance.

Ao Tu asked, "May I ask, Venerable, how were Guangzhi and Guangmou dealt with?"

Ananda said, "Do not worry. To compensate them, I took their souls out of the Underworld and placed them in the Eight Legions Transformation Pool on Spirit Mountain, transforming them into two guardian yakshas. From then on, they would enjoy eternal bliss on Spirit Mountain. Naturally, they were endlessly grateful and withdrew their complaint of their own accord."

The moment Ao Tu heard the word "yakshas," an ominous premonition arose in him.

Sure enough, Ananda continued:

"Unfortunately, their strength was inadequate and their blessings meager. Just now, your golden light scattered their souls into nothingness. What a pity."

A chill ran down Ao Tu's back. His estimation of the ruthlessness of Buddhist methods rose yet another notch.

After Ananda left, Ao Tu hurried toward the Gao Village area.

After this incident, his thirst for strength grew even more urgent. Without sufficient strength, how was he any different from those yakshas?

[Ding! Entering mission area.]

[Current side quest: Slaying demons at Gao Village.]

[Mission requirement: Obstruct the Pilgrim within the Gao Village area. Rewards will be calculated according to the duration of the obstruction.]

[Mission rewards: Three days / Three-Turn Golden Elixir, seven days / true dragon essence blood, half a month / Purple-Patterned Peach of Immortality, one month / houtian spiritual treasure · Five-Fire Divine Flame Fan, one season / Supernatural Ability · Five-Colored Divine Light, half a year / ancestral dragon essence blood, one year / congenital spiritual treasure · Soul-Scattering Gourd, three years / congenital spiritual treasure · Hetu Luoshu, twelve years / Chaos Bell, sixty years...]

[Current progress: Twelve days.]