Journey to the West: Signing in for 500 Years-Chapter 491 - 485: Jin Chanzi Returns [Seeking Subscriptions and Monthly Tickets]_1
Sha Chen’s expression was somewhat subdued, as if the arrival of his ninth life had not caused any emotional fluctuations within him. In fact, he had known for a long time that this ninth life was approaching. Although in several previous lives, Buddhism had feared he might mislead Jin Chanzi, so they had replanned alternative routes for the Journey to the West.
But now, this life had to follow the standard route of the Journey to the West. This place was the most suitable, the nearest, and had the most intersections with the Realm of People. Although the journey was long, it had been meticulously planned. Removing or subduing all the demons and evil spirits along the way was part of the plan. As for the people they would encounter along the way, most did not believe in Buddhism, and the Journey to the West could spread the Buddhist Law and win their worship for Buddhism. Spreading the faith of Buddhism was, after all, their paramount task. Everything else was trivial in comparison.
Therefore, the several alternative routes that Buddhism had planned were just precautionary measures, also meant to sow confusion. They felt that Jin Chanzi’s reincarnation might collude with Sha Chen, perhaps even join forces, so the idea was to prevent them from having any chance of meeting. But who could have known that after changing Jin Chanzi’s route, Sha Chen remained indifferent? He completely disregarded it and didn’t care in the slightest.
After several lifetimes of trials, they also felt that Jin Chanzi’s reincarnation might truly have no connection with Sha Chen. It was just that Sha Chen didn’t want to be entangled with Buddhism, thus he persistently refused to emerge from the water and refrained from devouring the pilgrims. In short, Sha Chen seemed determined to oppose Buddhism. By now, Buddhism had come to feel that as long as Sha Chen didn’t mislead their pilgrims, nothing else really mattered. Thus, instructing the pilgrims to follow the correct route once again was part of their plan.
It was also a subtle scheme by Buddhism. Lately, Buddhism and Sha Chen had been at odds, and Sha Chen had also been resisting Buddhism. Even Tathagata had forcefully invaded the Flowing Sand River, yet Sha Chen had continuously barred him from entry. As a result, Sha Chen must surely harbor deep hatred towards Buddhism. Could he possibly remain indifferent when the pilgrims passed by? They believed Sha Chen would most likely devour the pilgrims or kill them out of spite. In any case, he would certainly not let the pilgrims have an easy time. This would be in keeping with Sha Chen’s vengeful nature. Thus, the pilgrims would become enemies with Sha Chen, and their great calamity of the Journey to the West would become intertwined with Sha Chen’s karma. When the time came, it would be impossible for Sha Chen to disengage or remain uninvolved.
So, to put it simply, the pilgrims retracing the route this life was meant to tempt the snake out of its hole, inducing Sha Chen to take revenge and accrue karma. Buddhism was convinced that Sha Chen would never let the pilgrims cross the river and pass by without intervening.
The White Bone Demon didn’t understand these intricacies, as she hadn’t experienced all of this. She had only heard about the discord between Sha Chen and Buddhism, but she had known about their incompatibility from early on.
At this moment, outside the Flowing Sand River, Jin Chanzi’s ninth incarnation had a complex look in his eyes. He looked out upon the vast, boundless Flowing Sand River with a troubled and helpless expression, but his heart was filled with longing and excitement. At last, he had returned here. Master, your disciple has returned.
But still, with a helpless expression, he looked left and right at the people beside him and said, "Disciples, what shall we do now? This river is vast and boundless; it’s simply uncrossable. With your boundless Mana, can you carry your master across by swimming?"
The people on either side of him included both acquaintances and strangers. However, there was one thing they all had in common: they were all followers of Buddhism. One of them was the great warrior Jinzha, a nominal disciple of the Tathagata Buddha, tasked with protecting the pilgrim of this lifetime. Another was an Old Turtle from Buddhism’s Wish Pond, who had also become a disciple of the pilgrim. Besides them, there was another, the long-unseen Marshal Tianpeng. But at this moment, Marshal Tianpeng’s gaze was restless; he darted his eyes left and right, looking at the Flowing Sand River with unconcealed excitement.
Suddenly, a voice transmitted into Tianpeng’s mind, "Tianpeng, I have planted a nightmare within you. Don’t even think of sending word, or you will perish, body and soul. Sha Chen is fond of you, and he will let you enter the Flowing Sand River. When the time comes, I will emerge. I assure you, I only want the Flowing Sand River Cave and will not harm you or Sha Chen."
Tianpeng snorted and replied in his mind, "Zhenyuanzi, you are truly despicable, deceiving me like this! Let me tell you, you will not enter the Flowing Sand River Cave." It turned out the voice was none other than Zhenyuanzi’s.
Zhenyuanzi spoke indifferently, "If you do not agree, then I shall kill you, ascend to the heavens to slay Chang E, and wipe out everyone in Gao Village that you care about."
Tianpeng’s face changed drastically, and he gritted his teeth, "You are despicable."
Zhenyuanzi said, "I am being far-sighted and calculating. Trust me, I will not break my word. I only want the cave and will not harm a hair on your heads."
Tianpeng frowned and sneered inwardly. He didn’t believe a single word Zhenyuanzi said. This cunning old fellow had deceived him for many years, imprisoned him for over a decade, and was still trying to brainwash him. However, Tianpeng also feared death and didn’t dare to express his dissent outright, as Zhenyuanzi could end his life in an instant. At that moment, Tianpeng could only hope Sha Chen would see through the deception and, ideally, be able to overpower Zhenyuanzi. But he felt the chances of that were very low. Even now, he hesitated, wondering whether to tell Sha Chen, whether to sacrifice himself.
Jinzha, the Old Turtle, and Tianpeng escorted Jin Chanzi’s ninth incarnation to the Flowing Sand River. And the gods and Buddhas in the heavens were all monitoring this place, for it was the Flowing Sand River, which housed Sha Chen, an existence that troubled all celestial beings and Buddhas. Not only the lesser gods and Buddhas, but even the Jade Emperor of the Heavenly Court and Tathagata of the Western Heaven were paying close attention to the events unfolding here. They were all concerned about what was happening, eager to see what Sha Chen’s next move would be.
Jin Chanzi’s ninth incarnation looked at the three ’disciples’ he had accepted, feeling troubled. "I wish to cross the river," he said, "but its expanse is as vast as the sea. How can I possibly cross? You disciples always claim to possess vast Divine Powers. How about you help your master cross the river today?"
Jinzha and the Old Turtle were both followers of Buddhism and possessed vast Divine Powers. They naturally knew of Buddhism’s scheme: to make Sha Chen confront Jin Chanzi’s reincarnation and thus become entangled in karma. After all, Buddhism had already provoked Sha Chen. With them appearing here now, Sha Chen was certain to harbor resentment. If they directly transported Jin Chanzi’s reincarnation across, Sha Chen might turn a blind eye, and the opportunity would be missed. If they let Jin Chanzi’s reincarnation struggle, Sha Chen might become furious and lash out. This would implicate Sha Chen in the resulting karma. Therefore, both of them were in a dilemma.
Jinzha said, "Master, crossing the river isn’t difficult. Your disciple only needs to blow a breath, and you’ll be transported across. But you also said we need to be down-to-earth and take the Journey to the West one step at a time. Doing that would be cheating."
The Old Turtle said, "Goose feathers can’t even float on this river water. For this disciple to carry you, Master, while swimming across would be like a mortal trying to ascend to the heavens—utterly impossible."
He wasn’t lying, but Jin Chanzi’s ninth incarnation was displeased. He scolded, "You all boast of your vast Divine Powers on ordinary days. How come you’re suddenly incapable now? Your master is profoundly disappointed in you!"
Then, he turned to Tianpeng and asked, "Wuneng, do you have a solution?" By a twist of fate in this lifetime, Jin Chanzi’s ninth incarnation had given Tianpeng the Buddhist monastic name Wuneng.
Tianpeng said, "Master, I would like to take you across, but the river water here is murky, and I can’t swim through it either. How about this: let’s take a detour. It would be safer, and we can still be down-to-earth."
Jinzha and the Old Turtle’s expressions changed subtly. They exchanged a glance and vehemently objected, "No, absolutely not! If we take a detour, who knows how many years it will take to get around it."
Zhenyuanzi also snorted coldly in Tianpeng’s mind, "Tianpeng, don’t cause trouble for me."
Tianpeng remained silent, but his eyes darted around rapidly.
Jin Chanzi’s ninth incarnation said, "This won’t work, and that won’t work. What solution do you have then? Don’t tell me you expect this poor monk to swim across himself?!"
He had only said it out of frustration, but to his surprise, both Jinzha and the Old Turtle nodded in agreement.
Jinzha said, "Master, what you say makes sense. You are the chosen one, blessed by the Buddha. If you enter the water yourself, perhaps you really could swim across."
