Chapter 309 Extra Chapter: When the Journey to the West is Full of Our Own People (Part 5)

"That voice sounds so familiar."

"These lines sound so familiar."

"So...it's someone I know again?"

Tang Sanzang glanced at the Liusha River stall surrounded by a group of little demons, then at Wukong and Bajie, whose expressions were hard to describe. His feelings were a bit complicated. Was this journey to the West a little too familiar? Were there acquaintances everywhere we went?

"My presence here is inextricably linked to him."

Even Ao Lie, who was usually reserved and pretending to be a white dragon horse, couldn't help but speak up.

"Okay, that's all. They say it's a rare specialty, and there's not much left. Come earlier next time, okay? Goodbye..."

A group of regretful little monsters dispersed, revealing a tall figure with a head of fiery red, fluffy hair standing by the river, tidying up a small table.

As Tang Sanzang and his companions approached, he didn't even look up, and habitually said, "Please come earlier next time, we're sold out today."

"Rolling up the curtain..."

Bajie exclaimed with emotion. The man opposite him was somewhat taken aback. He looked up, recognized Wukong, and laughed loudly, "Wukong, what brings you here?"

"It's a long story, but what are you doing here, General Curtain Roller?"

"I am no longer the Curtain-Raising General. I live in this Flowing Sand River waiting for someone. Just call me Sha Wujing."

Sha Wujing revealed a simple and honest smile, showing no trace of the shrewdness and cleverness he displayed when selling goods.

"Aren't you the top seller in the Jade Pool? If you leave, who will sell goods for the Heavenly Court?"

Upon hearing Pigsy's question, Sandy hesitated for a moment before looking over and asking, "Who is this Brother Pig?"

"I am Tianpeng!"

Bajie reached out and smoothed his hair on both sides, then tossed his head. This familiar gesture instantly made Sha Wujing recognize him.

"So it's Marshal Tianpeng! What brings you here?"

"Hey, changing jobs and going through tribulations is nothing, but what's wrong with you? Why did you suddenly descend to the mortal realm?"

Sha Wujing scratched his head and said helplessly, "I'm just selling pearls. The one that the Dragon King of the West Sea had broke broke, and he came up to complain, saying that we were making false claims. So I took him to see it in person. It is indeed inlaid in the Lingxiao Palace. But he wouldn't let it go. The Queen Mother also said that I shouldn't have revealed the production secrets. So I came down here. I'm just finding a new place to work."

Now it was Wukong and Bajie's turn to scratch their heads, and Ao Lie also gave up, they still couldn't figure out what the problem was.

"Amitabha," Tang Sanzang said suddenly, his hands clasped together, "I wonder how many pearls are needed to warrant the word 'production'?"

“I haven’t counted them either,” Sha Wujing thought seriously for a while and shook his head. “We would get the pearls from the River God, have them set in the Lingxiao Palace for an hour, and then take them down to sell. I’m not sure exactly how many there were, but there were definitely a thousand or eight hundred.”

"Wait, didn't you say four?"

Ao Lie was about to break down.

"Just a little trick in the live stream," Sha Wujing said, feeling slightly guilty.

"You sold the pearl that the River God brought in to the Dragon King? That's a small trick! You've tricked me completely!"

Ao Lie roared, and Sha Wujing looked at him sheepishly: "May I ask who you are?"

"Ao Lie, the Third Prince of the Western Sea!"

"Oh, you unfilial son... no, you are the son of the Dragon King of the West Sea."

"I heard you, I'm going to make a scene, I..."

"Shut up!"

Wukong manually muted the microphone and pinched the horse's mouth shut, leaving Ao Lie helplessly furious. In his anger, he kicked the grass.

Bajie combed his hair with his miniature rake, thoroughly enjoying the show. "You just exposed such a trade secret like that. No wonder the Queen Mother kicked you down."

Sha Wujing waved his hand: "Let's not talk about the past anymore. Anyway, I'm doing quite well here in the Flowing Sand River. I sell things, wait for monks, and live a pretty good life."

"Wait... a monk?"

The group all turned to look at Tang Sanzang.

"Amitabha," Tang Sanzang looked at Sha Wujing, "If I'm not mistaken, you are my third disciple, aren't you?" A former beauty queen of Yaochi.

Pigsy probed, "Junior brother?"

Wukong exclaimed with delight, "Third Brother!"

"Master," Sha Wujing slowly recognized the person, "Eldest Brother? Second Brother?"

"Why!"

Wukong answered crisply, "This journey to the West to obtain the scriptures was still a profitable one!"

"Then what am I?" Ao Lie couldn't help but peek out.

"Consider it a mount."

"Calculate the horse."

"You just don't know how to talk!"

...

And so, all members of the pilgrimage team to the West were officially present, and the journey to obtain the scriptures officially began.

"Won't everyone going to be next be someone you know?"

Tang Sanzang couldn't help but ask, and Wukong shook his head repeatedly: "How could that be? It's easy to team up with someone you know, but there will really be danger later on."

"Really?"

"Of course! The journey to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures—in other words, the final test of Buddhism—could it be so easy to pass?"

"Now that you mention it, it makes a lot of sense," Pigsy stroked his chin, tossed his head, and gave a firm guarantee, "Based on my experience as Marshal Tianpeng, Buddhism isn't easy to penetrate, is it?"

"What experience? Did you fail to switch jobs?"

"Ao Lie! You are a horse now, a horse! Understand?"

"Tsk, you weren't like this when you used to chat with me about gossip..."

[Wukong: thug; Bajie: pure pig demon; Sha Wujing: handsome and dashing; Ao Lie: talkative. Could such a pilgrimage team truly reach the Western Paradise peacefully?]

【Wait, where did you put our Tang Sanzang, the tenth reincarnation of Jin Chanzi?】

[Tang Sanzang: The badger in the melon field]

[Fellow Daoist's assessment is accurate and fair. Don't be fooled by Tang Sanzang's silence; he's a true gossipmonger. Not only does he remember what he hears, but he can also analyze the situation to deduce the reasons for the Curtain-Raising Monk's demotion.]

[By the way, were pearls really "produced" like that?]

[Who's that Dragon King upstairs? Still not giving up?]

[Senior viewers should watch fewer live streams; don't be fooled]

Fellow cultivators, let's make a bet: are there any more people they recognize next?

I bet I have.

【have】

Why even bother betting? Everyone knows Yang Wukong is a well-known figure with powerful connections throughout the Three Realms. Who would dare offend him?

[It's still worth a gamble. There are eighty-one tribulations in total, so let's bet on how many of the remaining dozens of tribulations we'll recognize.]

Is it really that difficult?

[To protect the live streaming environment, gambling is prohibited in the "Journey to the West" live stream room.]

[Oh, this is from the official website. Fellow Daoists who want to gamble, let's find another place.]

[The wind was blowing hard, so we had to get out of there; we told the younger ones, but now the older ones are here.]

...

"They're here, they're here."

The old woman of Lishan, who was scouting the area, saw the four of them walking in their direction and hurried back to report the news.

Upon hearing this, Guanyin Bodhisattva, Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, and Manjushri Bodhisattva quickly put away their ritual implements. The live stream could no longer be watched; it was time for them to enter.

The four transformed into a mother and her three daughters, awaiting the arrival of Tang Sanzang and his disciples.