Hearing Chen Xuanzang's doubts, the voice chuckled and said leisurely: "If you want to know the truth, go to the Lingshan Mountain in the West."

"Remember, the purpose of this trip is to cultivate. Don't rush for quick success. Once you have obtained the true scriptures and achieved the right results, I will appear to meet you."

"……ha?"

Chen Xuanzang, or Nie Changchuan, showed surprise and hurriedly continued to ask a few more questions, but he could not get any response at all. It was as if the other party was just urging him to go west to obtain the scriptures, and then left quietly after speaking.

Nie Changchuan leaped up, crashed through the ceiling of the inn, and flew over Chang'an.

Then golden light burst out from his eyes, and he scanned the nine heavens and ten earths with his divine vision.

But unfortunately, no matter how hard he searched, he could not find any trace of the voice.

"...Pretending to be a ghost, could this guy be the Tathagata Buddha?"

Nie Changchuan frowned and muttered a few words in a low voice.

Then, he turned his head, looked towards the west and pondered for a moment, and couldn't help but sigh.

If this voice is really that of Tathagata Buddha, it means that Tathagata Buddha is much stronger than him. In addition, because of the grace of teaching him when he was young and the grace of protecting his mother, he will definitely go to the Western Paradise.

If the voice was not from Tathagata Buddha but from another person with great supernatural powers, and the other party had already stated that he would be waiting for him at Lingshan, it would be reasonable for him to go to the West to find out the truth and answer his doubts.

...It seems that this journey to the West cannot be avoided!

Nie Changchuan was suspended in the air, he sighed, and couldn't help feeling depressed.

At this moment, a surprising voice suddenly came from the street below.

"Master Xuan... Master Xuanzang?"

Nie Changchuan raised his eyebrows and looked down, only to see Wei Zheng holding the imperial edict, standing on the street with a team of ceremonial guards and imperial guards, staring blankly at the sky, in complete silence.

Seeing this scene, Nie Changchuan quickly retracted the golden light in his eyes and fell to the ground.

After receiving the imperial edict, Nie Changchuan clasped his hands together, looked solemn, and respectfully saw Wei Zheng and others off.

Wei Zheng had a complicated expression, he seemed to want to say something but hesitated, but in the end he said nothing and left the inn with a heart full of shock and confusion.

The next day, Li Er led the civil and military officials of the Tang Dynasty to the altar and announced his will in public.

Nie Changchuan, wearing a cassock, stepped forward to receive the order, and then with the help of Wei Zheng and others, he selected 1,200 monks from thousands of monks, assigned them to the upper, middle and lower halls, each performing their duties, and chanting Buddhist scriptures together.

But today is just a rehearsal before the conference.

The real water and land conference will have to be held on another auspicious day.

Time passed quickly, and soon it was the auspicious day set by the monks.

Nie Changchuan presided over the meeting as the master of the altar. Li Er, civil and military officials in the court, and a group of royal relatives all attended the meeting on time. They worshiped the golden statue of Buddha in Huasheng Temple and went to the altar to burn incense and listen to the lecture.

Nie Changchuan gathered the crowd and went up to the platform, where he recited the "Shuishengzhuan" (The Sutra of Reincarnation and Salvation) for a while, and then chanted the "Anbang Tianbaozhuan" (The Seal of Peace and Treasure) for a while.

Both of them are Hinayana Buddhist scriptures, and are also the scriptures for overcoming difficulties that were discussed by the monks before the meeting.

Although this scripture can help the dead ascend to heaven, it is not powerful enough. In a water and land conference of this scale, and in front of the stubborn ghosts in the City of the Dead, it still pales in comparison.

At this time, Guanyin Bodhisattva had returned from Lingshan, and was hiding under the altar with Mu Zha, listening to the lecture.

Seeing that Nie Changchuan was reciting some Hinayana Buddhist scriptures, Guanyin Bodhisattva knew that the time had come and was about to appear and preach the Mahayana Buddhist scriptures in order to intimidate Nie Changchuan and the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty with Buddhist teachings.

At this moment, Guanyin Bodhisattva was suddenly surprised to find that Nie Changchuan's soul had quietly left his body, escaped into the underworld in the sound of Buddhist music, and flew straight to the sky above the City of the Dead.

In an instant, Nie Changchuan's soul in the underworld burst out with an incomparably dazzling golden light.

The blazing golden light of the sun made the underworld as bright as day. Countless wronged souls and dead ghosts screamed and wailed, with black smoke rising from their bodies. They were actually purified and reborn by the golden light of the soul!

For a moment, thousands of ghosts in the City of the Dead were howling, and the ghosts and gods in the Senluo Palace were frightened.

Seeing this scene, Nie Changchuan showed a satisfied smile on his face.

Guanyin Bodhisattva was stunned, then silently put down her raised right leg and looked at the great monk on the altar with a sad face.

...This version of the pilgrim is too capable, and she really can’t find a suitable opportunity to make an appearance!

Just like that, the forty-nine-day water and land conference soon came to an end.

Guanyin Bodhisattva watched the whole process and became more and more anxious.

The water and land conference was almost over, but she still hadn't found a suitable opportunity to perform.

If this continues, the Buddhist plan of Journey to the West will inevitably be delayed, and her previous layout in the Five Elements Mountain, Gao Laozhuang, and the Liusha River will also disappear.

……what to do?

Guanyin Bodhisattva frowned and thought quickly in his mind.

At this moment, Nie Changchuan on the high altar glanced at her, sighed slightly in his heart, and then stepped out and said: "Your Majesty, I have presided over the Water and Land Conference in recent days, and the effect is very good, but this is not my credit, but the credit of Guanyin Bodhisattva's enlightenment on the eve of the conference!"

"Avalokitesvara?"

Li Er was shocked and couldn't help asking, "Is what Master Dachan said true?"

Nie Changchuan clasped his hands together, chanted a Buddhist name, and then looked down.

Guanyin Bodhisattva was startled for a moment, then immediately understood and flew to the high platform with Mu Zha. Then she stepped on the auspicious clouds and flew up to the sky, holding the pure bottle and willows, revealing her true form as the Savior of Suffering.

Everyone present was shocked and immediately bowed to the sky, calling him "Venerable".

Guanyin Bodhisattva took the opportunity to preach Mahayana Buddhism and decided to journey to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures in front of the Tang Emperor.

The subsequent plot was not much different from the original. Nie Changchuan was very cooperative and almost took the initiative to take on the journey to the West, becoming the person chosen by Li Er to obtain Buddhist scriptures in the Tang Dynasty.

A few days later, Nie Changchuan, who had been given the name Tang Sanzang by the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, finally embarked on the journey to obtain Buddhist scriptures.

But unlike in the original novel, Nie Changchuan declined the servants and guards given by Li Er and chose to travel alone.

Before leaving, he went back home, met his father and mother, and spent a night playing with his twin brother and sister, a boy and a girl, who were born to his parents a few years ago. Only then did he finally put on his robes, took his staff, and left Chang'an City.

When they reached the outskirts of Chang'an City, Nie Changchuan paused, glanced at the clouds in the sky and said, "Since the Bodhisattva is here, why not show up to meet us?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a rosy glow appeared in the sky, and Guanyin Bodhisattva landed in front of Nie Changchuan on a cloud, looking at him with a complicated expression.

"I am very pleased that Master Sanzang is willing to take on the important task of traveling west. I just don't know who changed the Master's mind?"

"Then there is no need for the Bodhisattva to worry about this." Nie Changchuan said calmly, "I just want to know, if I am not sincere in my heart, will there be any Mahayana scriptures passed down to me when I reach the Lingshan Mountain in the West Heaven?"

Guanyin Bodhisattva frowned, but still said: "Amitabha, that's natural."

"That's good."

Nie Changchuan nodded and took another step forward.

Although Guanyin Bodhisattva was full of doubts, she also knew that Nie Changchuan was the only one who could go west this time.

She sighed softly and was about to fly away on the cloud to observe the situation, but suddenly she remembered something and hurriedly stopped him and said, "Let Master Sanzang know that there are three great monsters on the road ahead, all of them have magical powers."

"Before I came to Chang'an, I used Buddhism to enlighten them one by one. If you meet Master Sanzang on the way, don't kill him. You may as well accept him as your disciple and keep him at your service. He can protect your life... and your luggage."

“…”

Nie Changchuan looked at Guanyin Bodhisattva with a strange expression, then nodded and said, "Thank you for telling me, Bodhisattva. I can save myself from it!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Guanyin Bodhisattva flew to the clouds and his figure gradually disappeared.

But Nie Changchuan knew that the other party had not left, but was just hiding in the dark and spying.

Considering that Guanyin Bodhisattva might be worried that he would be too harsh and kill Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie and Sha Seng, Nie Changchuan ignored him and strode forward, allowing Guanyin Bodhisattva to observe him secretly.

In just one day, Nie Changchuan traveled all the way from Chang'an to Hezhouwei.

This place is the border of the mountains and rivers of the Tang Dynasty. Nie Changchuan's speed is so fast that he arrived in one day, which frightened the general of the border town and made him suspicious. He did not dare to hastily acknowledge the identity of this royal brother mage.

However, the monks of the local Fuyuan Temple had seen Nie Changchuan at the Water and Land Assembly, and they immediately and respectfully invited him into the temple and offered him tea and food.

The next day, the general of the border town rode at full speed and finally confirmed Nie Changchuan's identity from Gongzhou City.

He was horrified and quickly took people to Fuyuan Temple, but learned that Nie Changchuan had left as early as four o'clock in the morning. Considering that Master Sanzang could reach the border of the Tang Dynasty in one day, he should be dozens of miles away at this time.

Upon hearing this news, the general of Zhenbian regretted it very much, but he could only accept the reality.

At the same time, there is a rugged mountain range dozens of miles outside the city.

The mountains are densely covered with trees and weeds. There are no people and no mountain roads.

Nie Changchuan originally planned to jump over the mountain directly, but thinking that Guanyin Bodhisattva was still watching, he gave Guanyin some face, raised his palm and slapped out a golden dragon, clearing a wide mountain road on the mountain for five horses to run side by side.

Seeing Nie Changchuan lowering his arms, holding the Zen stick, and walking leisurely up the mountain road, the Bodhisattva Guanyin in the sky couldn't help but sigh, turned around and looked at the several guardian gods and heavenly gods around him and said:

"That's what happened. You saw it, right?"

“…”

The guardian gods looked at each other in bewilderment.

Taibai Jinxing looked at the monsters on the mountain that were startled by the noise, and couldn't help showing pity on his face.

According to the script, this mountain was the first difficulty for the pilgrims. Master Tripitaka would be kidnapped by the demons occupying the mountain, and then Taibai Jinxing would come forward to rescue Master Tripitaka.

But at the moment, it’s hard to say who is having a harder time!