Chapter 350: Chapter 350

"Fool, the credit for rescuing Master this time is all yours!"

Upon hearing Zhu Bajie’s words, Sun Wukong couldn’t help but say with a laugh.

"Alright, Brother Monkey!"

As soon as Zhu Bajie heard what Sun Wukong said, he leaped into the air and in the blink of an eye, arrived at the main entrance of the Coiled Silk Cave.

He was just about to smash his Nine-toothed Rake down.

However, at that moment, several little figures crawled out from inside, each only a bit over two feet tall. Zhu Bajie looked closely and saw that they were a group of insects that had become spirits.

It turned out these little demons were dry sons of the seven Spider Spirits, known as Honey, Wasp, Gadfly, Moth, Horsefly, Beeswax, and Dragonfly.

Honey was a honeybee, Wasp was a hornet, Gadfly was a gadfly, Moth was, well, a moth, Horsefly was a horsefly, Beeswax made beeswax, and Dragonfly was a dragonfly.

All of them were insects that had become spirits. Originally, those seven Spider Spirits cast their webs high and wide, capturing these insects. The insects, pleading for mercy, were willing to recognize the Spider Spirits as their godmothers.

The seven Spider Spirits also needed underlings to help with miscellaneous chores, so they agreed to adopt them as their godsons.

Before the seven Spider Spirits went out to bathe, they instructed them to keep a close watch and guard the gate tightly. Sun Wukong had already stirred these bugs once when he came by earlier, and they had intended to stop him then, but before they could act, Sun Wukong simply left without a fight.

And now, a pig had shown up out of nowhere.

These little bugs were clueless about life and death and, afraid that these people would damage the spider web and their godmothers would blame them, they rushed out to stop them.

Zhu Bajie said furiously, "Where did all you little brats come from? Get out of the way quickly, or Grandpa Pig will rake you down and send you to the Western Heaven."

The little figures shouted, "We are the sons of the Seven Fairy Sisters! Who are you demons to dare to attack our Coiled Silk Cave? Continue with your insolence, and don’t blame us for being impolite."

"Ho! You’re not big but you sure talk tough! Don’t you run! Let’s see if Old Pig doesn’t beat you to death."

Zhu Bajie, filled with pent-up anger, found a vent for his fury upon seeing these little demons so brazen, and swinging his nine-foot rake, he charged at them.

Seeing Zhu Bajie’s ferocity, the little figures didn’t dare to resist head-on and quickly transformed, suddenly turning into a swarm of insects. Looking around, it was a dark cloud of countless bugs of all sorts.

"Buzz, buzz!" Thousands of insects flew towards Zhu Bajie and in an instant, enveloped him completely. The little bugs landed on Zhu Bajie’s body, biting, stinging, and pricking.

Zhu Bajie felt unbearably itchy all over and in pain, swinging his rake wildly to strike at them, but with so many insects, he couldn’t fend them off.

Zhu Bajie, pissed off by the bites, grumbled with a grimaced face, "That damn monkey knew there was trouble here, that’s why he let me come!"

"Even bugs dare to bully people on this journey to the Western Heaven!"

Zhu Bajie roared and from his mouth spurted a flame which also turned into a blaze.

Although Zhu Bajie’s demon fire was not very powerful, it was not something these little bugs could contend with.

The flames spread far and wide.

In the blink of an eye, all the swarming insects were burned to death. The few that escaped the fire were also killed off by Zhu Bajie with other methods.

By the time Sun Wukong arrived with the Spider Spirits, he found that all of their adopted sons had been killed.

There was a feeling of sorrow for the death of the rabbit and the sadness of the fox.

But it made the Spider Spirits even more afraid to resist against Zhu Bajie and Sun Wukong, fearing they might be the next to be killed.

"Quick, gather up these spider webs so we can go in and save our Master!"

The Spider Spirits didn’t dare to misbehave and could only obediently collect their webs.

Following that, Sun Wukong rushed into the Coiled Silk Cave and rescued the hanging Xuanzang.

Sun Wukong smiled and said to Xuanzang, "Master, the next time we go for alms, let your disciple do it!"

Xuanzang was also extremely frustrated and quickly replied, "Disciple, even if I starve to death, I’m not going ever again."

Zhu Bajie, after being tormented by the insects, was even more enraged with nowhere to unleash it and said angrily, "You guys help Master on his way first, and I, Old Pig, will take down their damn cave."

Sun Wukong said with a chuckle, "Why bother with effort, just burn the whole thing down."

Just at that moment, Xuanzang spoke up.

"Master, are you trying to be merciful?"

Zhu Bajie couldn’t help but laugh as he asked.

"Nonsense, I am thinking of converting these demons!"

"These demons need a place to live too!"

Xuanzang glared at Zhu Bajie, slightly annoyed as he spoke.

Zhu Bajie and Sun Wukong exchanged a look and nodded.

"Then Master, you oversee their conversion; Brother Monkey and the fool will move on ahead!"

Sun Wukong said with a smile.

Afterward, Zhu Bajie also gave Sun Wukong a peculiar glance, then the two of them headed down the Great Dao.

Just as the two had walked only a few steps, they heard Buddhist chanting from behind them.

"Big Brother, Second Senior Brother, you’ve returned!"

At this moment, Sand Monk, who had been waiting on the main road, was looking around anxiously.

Upon seeing Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie, he hurriedly greeted them.

"No worries, your master is behind us, performing Universal Salvation on those demons!"

Zhu Bajie opened his mouth to say.

"Exactly, he should be here soon!"

Sun Wukong also nodded in agreement.

Upon hearing this, Sand Monk also breathed a sigh of relief, feeling less concerned.

Indeed, it wasn’t long before Xuanzang had returned.

After resting by the roadside for a while, Sun Wukong acquired a meal of vegetarian food for Tang Monk, and they waited until everyone had eaten their fill and drunk plenty.

Thus, they set out on the road again, continuing westward along the main route, crossing mountains and valleys.

Although the journey was arduous, their steed was a Dragon Horse, so crossing mountains was a breeze, and their pace was unabated. In no time, they had traveled dozens of miles, when suddenly, they saw layered towers and majestic palaces up ahead.

Tang Monk reined in the horse reins and smilingly asked, "Disciples, what do you think that place ahead is?"

Sun Wukong looked up and, with a smile, replied, "That’s no residence of princes or ministers; it’s a Daoist temple. Let’s go take a look!"

Xuanzang nodded, then spurred his horse forward, with the three disciples following closely. Soon after, they arrived at the mountain gate, where Xuanzang looked up to see a large stone tablet inscribed with the words ’Yellow Flower Temple’.

Xuanzang smiled and said, "It really is a Daoist temple."

Zhu Bajie chuckled and said, "This Yellow Flower Temple is a place for Taoists. We could go in and meet these Taoists. Although they practice the Daoist ways and we practice Buddhism, we’re all cultivators, all monastic—naturally, we should Find your next favorite novel on NovelHub today!"

Sand Monk butted in, "Second Senior Brother makes a fair point this time. We might as well go in to admire the scenery and rest a bit. Besides, with the sky growing dark and this place being in the middle of wilderness, we might as well stay here for the night, partake in a vegetarian meal, and then resume our journey tomorrow without delay."

Sun Wukong, with a smile, said, "Master, there’s no need for further discussion; let’s just go in."

So Sun Wukong led the way inside, and Xuanzang and the rest followed him in.

After passing the mountain gate and reaching the second gate, they saw a couplet written above it.

"The Immortal Mansion of Yellow Buds and White Snow, home of the Feathered Immortal Amidst the Precious Grass and Bizarre Flowers."

Sun Wukong chuckled and said, "Inside are the Taoists who burn weeds, refine medicines, and tend to their alchemy furnaces and water jugs."

Xuanzang hastily gestured and said, "Wukong, keep it down. If we annoy our host, it could cause troubles."

Sun Wukong hastily covered his mouth, chuckled impishly, and continued to walk inside with Xuanzang.

Once inside, after entering through the second gate, they saw that the main hall was shut tight, and a Daoist was sitting under the East Corridor, drying some medicinal herbs. Upon seeing the Daoist, who was rather decently dressed, Xuanzang promptly called out, "Old Immortal, Monk greets you."

The Daoist suddenly looked up, startled, then quickly put down the herbs in his hands, straightened his clothes, and hurried over with a smile, offering a bow and saying, "Old Monk, forgive me for not greeting you sooner, please come in and have a seat."

The master of the Yellow Flower Temple ushered Tang Monk and his disciples into the great hall, where the Holy Images of the Three Pure Ones were enshrined.

Having paid respects to the Three Pure Ones, Tang Monk and his disciples were led to the guest room by the master of the Yellow Flower Temple.

The master of the Yellow Flower Temple politely said, "Elders, please take a seat."

Upon hearing this, Tang Monk and his disciples sat down in succession.

The master then called out, "Daoist Boys, bring top-grade tea! Serve the esteemed elders."

The Daoist Boys stationed at the door responded and hurried off.

The master of the Yellow Flower Temple sat in the seat of honor and smilingly asked, "May I inquire where the elders have come from?"

Xuanzang quickly replied, "This humble monk is on a mission from the King of Tang in the Great Tang of the Eastern Land to visit the Western Great Thunderclap Monastery, to worship Buddha and seek scriptures. Today, I passed by your temple and am sorry for any disturbance we may cause."

"So you are high monks from the Eastern Land of Superiority, forgive my rudeness." The master of the Yellow Flower Temple feigned surprise and quickly rose again to offer a bow to Xuanzang and his entourage.

Tang Monk and his disciples quickly got up to reciprocate, exchanged a few more polite words, and then sat down again.

At this moment, several Daoist Boys entered hurriedly with teacups, as well as the prepared pastries and fruits. The Daoist Boy serving tea first presented a cup to Xuanzang. Noticing that Zhu Bajie was bigger in stature, assuming he was the oldest disciple, he gave the second cup to Zhu Bajie and the third to Sand Monk.

Thinking that Sun Wukong’s smaller figure implied he was the youngest disciple, the Daoist Boy gave the fourth cup to Sun Wukong, and then handed the last cup to the master of the Yellow Flower Temple.

Sun Wukong noticed that the last cup contained two black dates, while his own had three red dates floating in it, which immediately raised his suspicions. He laughed and said, "Daoist Priest, let’s switch cups."

The master of the Yellow Flower Temple chuckled and said, "What you don’t know, Elder, is that our temple lies in a secluded location surrounded by wilderness, and we don’t have a complete selection of tea fruits. I just went in the back to find these, ending up with only these twelve red dates for the four cups of tea to show our respect."

"As the host, I can’t very well join you empty-handed, so I used the two discoloured dates for my own cup. I hope the esteemed elders will forgive me."

Sun Wukong laughed and said, "How could we blame you for such warm hospitality, Daoist Priest? I love black dates the most, let’s just switch our cups!"

As he spoke, Sun Wukong quickly reached out to snatch the cup from the master of the Yellow Flower Temple’s hand.

The master of the Yellow Flower Temple quickly stepped aside, laughing and saying, "As honored guests, how could I let you eat the lower-quality fruit while I enjoy the top-grade red dates? Elder, please don’t be polite—enjoy your tea."