Journey to the West: Signing in for 500 Years-Chapter 413 - 407: Jinghe Dragon King Under House Arrest [Seeking Subscriptions and Monthly Tickets]_1

Chapter 413: Chapter 407: Jinghe Dragon King Under House Arrest [Seeking Subscriptions and Monthly Tickets]_1

Tathagata refused the Jade Emperor, unwilling to hand over Sha Chen. The two of them smiled faintly, looking at each other. People from both the Celestial and Buddhist sides bowed their heads, their hearts filled with worry. They feared that these two great figures might fall out over this matter.

The Jade Emperor said, "Sha Chen is a commander banished by our Heavenly Court for a term of one hundred years. After this period, he can return to the Heavenly Court."

Tathagata replied, "Sha Chen has a predestined relationship with our Buddhism and is the unparalleled choice for our mission to acquire scriptures. Now that he has been banished to the mortal world, he is no longer a person of the Heavenly Court and can rightly join our Buddhist order."

The Jade Emperor continued, "However, you were just trying to kill him."

Tathagata said as if it were the most natural thing, "Indeed, he did kill the head of our Arhat Hall and many of our Buddhist disciples, causing our Buddhism to lose all face.

"Our Buddha is compassionate. Although our disciples clamored for his death, our Buddhist assembly, with compassion in their hearts, would not truly deal a deadly blow."

He looked around, as all the Buddhists brought their hands together, "Amitabha, our Buddha is compassionate."

Tathagata continued, "Killing Sha Chen is out of the question. We only wish for him to put down his butcher’s knife and instantly become a Buddha. The process and methods may be difficult for some to accept, but they do not affect the outcome."

The Jade Emperor’s eyes flickered. With these words, Tathagata had made his stance clear. Buddhism would not truly kill Sha Chen, but they would also not let him off the hook. They would diminish Sha Chen’s prestige, suppress his spirit, and eventually subjugate him. This was the policy of Buddhism.

Eventually, this policy would not only make Sha Chen lose face and restore Buddhism’s dignity but also allow them to recruit an immensely powerful being, along with the secrets of his rise to power. It was a no-lose proposition, a deal Buddhism would naturally not relinquish.

On the other hand, the Jade Emperor said, "So, Tathagata has no intention of giving up on Sha Chen, the talent of my Heavenly Court?"

Tathagata replied, "He is no longer a person of the Heavenly Court. Once banished to the mortal realm, he has no further ties with the Heavenly Court.

"In fact, the way you have dealt with him afterwards is all wrong. He is no longer of the Heavenly Court and is not bound by its laws."

The Jade Emperor frowned and said, "Tathagata, Sha Chen is merely a banished commander, not a discarded one. He has not left our Heavenly Court."

Tathagata smiled and said, "Your Majesty might ask Sha Chen whether he still wishes to return to the Heavenly Court."

The Jade Emperor snorted, "Then Buddha might ask Sha Chen whether he wishes to join Buddhism."

The two men locked eyes, their confrontation sharp and unyielding, neither willing to back down. People from both the Celestial and Buddhist sides remained silent.

Tathagata said, "The poor monk was indeed planning to ask him."

The Jade Emperor was taken aback and exclaimed in astonishment, "You plan to make contact with him personally?" 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Tathagata replied, "A talent is worth the poor monk’s personal visit."

What followed, the exchange between the Celestial and Buddhist sides, remains unknown.

「Flowing Sand River Cave.」

Sha Chen had no idea that the Celestial and Buddhist sides were quarreling fiercely over him. But he knew that they would be thrown into disarray and anger because of his recent firm stance.

He had always been low-key and cautious; this time, he had forcefully opposed the united front of the Celestial and Buddhist powers. It was impossible for the Celestial and Buddhist sides to show no reaction, and Sha Chen had no better way to deal with it. After all, since matters had reached this point, he could only deal with whatever came his way.

The forces of both the Celestial realm and Buddhism were beyond his ability to provoke, but under the circumstances, he had to react. They had all come. If Sha Chen allowed them to forcefully attack the Flowing Sand River, although his cave dwelling itself might not suffer significant damage, the river might be drained by them. Then, the entire cave dwelling would be exposed, losing the Flowing Sand River’s protection. For Sha Chen, that would be like standing naked.

Furthermore, with so many people coming over and slinging mud at him, if he were to let them act recklessly, he would indeed be seen as harboring a criminal—even though that was exactly what he was doing. It was he who had instructed the Golden Winged Dapeng to kill Wu Qu Xing. It could be said he was the true mastermind. However, others could not say so, because the publicly available evidence could not prove he was responsible. Anyone daring to claim he did it would be asking for trouble.

Secondly, every cause has an effect. Since Wu Qu Xing, Dou Rong, was at fault first, Sha Chen’s retaliation was only natural.

When the Celestial and Buddhist forces joined hands, matters could easily escalate. Sha Chen could not watch them become a monolithic bloc against him, nor could he let the world think that just anyone could come and bully him.

For this reason, he had acted decisively. And once he acted, he had unleashed a massacre.

He felt that by doing this, he had revealed his strength too soon. This would cause others to take him more seriously and, consequently, deal with him more cautiously and perhaps more excessively. However, it would also deter petty cowards, preventing them from acting recklessly. As a result, the number of those daring to cause trouble for him at the Flowing Sand River would likely plummet. Sha Chen detested trouble; the fewer people who came looking for it, the better.

The Jinghe Dragon King and his two companions were all in cultivation. After Sha Chen imparted the Dao Techniques and a more complete version of the True Dragon Body Forging Technique to them, he also helped them unlock their potential. Now, they were all trying their utmost to enhance their strength. Ao Lie and the Dragon Girl aspired to reach the High-order Da Luo level, while the Jinghe Dragon King aimed to ascend to the Mid-stage Daluo Level. Then, they could leave and return to the Jinghe Dragon Palace.

After imparting his teachings, Sha Chen paid them no more heed. Instead, he took out the million-year-old white tiger bone to refine. Although his physical body was already very strong, being at the minor accomplishment stage of the Primeval Chaos Law Body, he was still far from Great Accomplishment. He had to find every possible way to improve. The white tiger bone could enhance the power of his physical bloodline, making it perfect for refining and strengthening his body. Sha Chen extracted the white tiger bone from the System and immediately began the refining process to temper his body.

Time passed, second by second.

「Three years went by.」

The Jinghe Dragon King was still unable to make a breakthrough because he was plagued by inner demons; the situation at the Jinghe Dragon Palace was his particular inner demon. In these three years, he had attempted to break through to the next realm countless times, but he failed each time. Sha Chen had no choice but to let him leave and return directly to the Dragon Palace.

After all, years had passed since the incident, and Kui Mulang and Chang E had also sent messengers during this period. The Heavenly Court had ruled on the matter of Wu Qu Xing, deeming his actions to be self-inflicted, and the Jinghe Dragon King was found not guilty. Furthermore, the Heavenly Court conducted a thorough search across the lands, dispatching Zhao Gongming of The Mysterious Altar Department to capture the Golden Winged Dapeng. With this, the Jinghe Dragon King was officially cleared of any wrongdoing, which was why Sha Chen agreed to let him return.

After the Jinghe Dragon King returned, Sha Chen noticed that he indeed faced no threats upon his arrival at the Dragon Palace. However, the Heavenly Court dispatched envoys, and various factions inquired about his whereabouts over the years and his current situation.

The Jinghe Dragon King had his explanations ready, claiming he had hidden near the Flowing Sand River, finding a place to conceal himself. He did not enter the Flowing Sand River but chose a spot nearby. As for whether the Heavenly Court believed him, he did not care.

And the fact that his strength had entered the Daluo Golden Immortal Realm was also made known; when the Heavenly Court learned of it, their expressions turned very grave.

How many years had it been since the Dragon Clan last had a true dragon ascend to the Da Luo Realm? Of the Four Seas Dragon Kings, only the Dragon Kings of the East Sea and West Sea were Daluo Golden Immortals; the other two were merely at the peak of the Greater Primordial Golden Immortal level. The Jinghe Dragon King had now reached the Da Luo level and seemed quite stable, even showing signs of progressing to the Mid-stage Daluo Level. How could he possibly experience such a late blooming?!

When the Heavenly Court learned of this, their expressions turned grave. The Jade Emperor once again sent envoys to invite the Jinghe Dragon King to Heaven, this time with the rationale of offering consolation. Wu Qu Xing had brought his fate upon himself; the Jinghe Dragon King, being the aggrieved party, naturally had to be received in Heaven for appeasement.

Upon ascending to Heaven, the Jinghe Dragon King immediately proposed relinquishing most of his power, which caught the Jade Emperor completely off guard. For a moment, the Jade Emperor was unsure whether to accept. If he accepted, he could not move against the Jinghe Dragon King to establish his dominance or fully consolidate power. If he refused and later moved against the Jinghe Dragon King, it would give others the impression that he was a tyrant. In short, he faced a dilemma.