Journey to the West: Starting by taking Sun Wukong as my disciple!-Chapter 685 - 684: Searching for Ao Lie
After several days under these circumstances, Chen Nuo felt that Bodhisattva Guanyin had now completely given up on him, and so he finally relaxed his guard.
Indeed, one’s own turf was best, where the heart need not be burdened with worries.
Chen Nuo uncapped his flask and took a couple sips of sake, now that he had been abandoned, he should also be seeking out the Third Prince.
Serpent Coiling Mountain, Eagle Sorrow Stream.
Sheer cliffs and precipices, where the water from above fell directly from the cliffs, flowing into the river below, and Ao Lie, the Third Prince of the West Sea Dragon King, had already been waiting here for many years.
Initially, he had been imprisoned due to a mistake he made, and thought he would spend his days in the water prison, but unexpectedly, the Bodhisattva found him and set him free.
The Bodhisattva told him to wait a few years for a cultivator who would pass by, for him to take as his master, and accompany him to the Western Heaven for Scriptures, and once he returned from the Journey to the West for Scriptures, his merits could expunge the crimes he had previously committed.
What a great deal it was, just a single trip to the Western Heaven, and upon return, he could ascend his former status as the noble Third Prince Ao Lie of the Dragon King.
Thus, Ao Lie had been waiting here all along, many years had passed, yet he saw no sign of any cultivator.
Due to the perilous environment, there were hardly any living creatures around, leaving Ao Lie with an empty belly, dizzy and blurry-eyed from hunger, but not a feather, let alone a cultivator, was to be found in this place.
Despite being famished, Ao Lie dared not leave recklessly.
He feared that the moment he left to search for food, the cultivator might just pass by, and in that case, wouldn’t he miss the chance to start anew?
Restlessly, Ao Lie waited at the bottom of the water.
Starving to the point of near blindness, Ao Lie could only gulp down water, which went in and came out serving no purpose. If only he could eat something, that would be marvelous.
Even a single fish or a head of vegetable would suffice, this feeling of hunger was even more unbearable than living in the water prison.
Perhaps because of the starvation, Ao Lie’s sense of smell had become exceedingly sharp; he thought he could smell the scent of a living creature.
Upon catching this scent, Ao Lie’s spirits lifted immensely.
He couldn’t be mistaken, not at all, this scent was indeed that of a living creature.
How splendid, how splendid, Ao Lie slowly rose from the bottom of the water to a foot below the surface, waiting to seize the creature as soon as it came near the water and devour it at once.
By this time, Chen Nuo had also arrived at Eagle Sorrow Stream. According to the original work, it seemed that Ao Lie first ate the horse, then fought with Sun Wukong, and it was only with Bodhisattva Guanyin’s intervention that the conflict was resolved, following which Tang Xuanzang forgave him.
Presumably, Ao Lie must be starved at this moment, which was perfect timing to take him out for a meal first, and then figure out whether he truly wished to surrender to Buddhism.
Chen Nuo had no intention of opposing Buddhism, but with Ao Lie at Chaos Residence looking for ingredients, there was no need to worry at all. It had to be said, Buddhism indeed knew how to choose, which unexpectedly made things convenient for him.
While he pondered, the horse carrying Chen Nuo had already reached the shore. After a long journey, the horse too was parched and just as they found a water source, it seemed fitting to stop and drink a few gulps.
Chen Nuo kept an eye on the shadow under the water, he couldn’t be mistaken. It seemed that Ao Lie was right there, but this horse belonged to Tian Peng, it couldn’t just be eaten like that; it was best to stop him.
Chen Nuo looked at the figure under the water, who was slowly rising up, awaiting his ambush from beneath the water. As the White Dragon Horse was about to emerge, Chen Nuo stretched out his hand and blocked the attack with his spiritual power.
The Little White Dragon had lain in ambush underwater for a long while, having focused all his strength into that one attack, just waiting to devour the living creature above. He hadn’t expected his strike to be blocked.
"You! Who are you?" the Little White Dragon asked. "You can cast spells, are you a cultivator sent by the Bodhisattva?"
"No," Chen Nuo replied. "I just happened to be passing by and let my horse have a rest and drink some water. But it seemed like you were about to attack it, so I intercepted. Are you very hungry?"
The Little White Dragon didn’t quite understand why someone with such powerful mana would travel on a horse instead of relying on spiritual power.
But he was, indeed, very hungry, and although it was embarrassing to admit his hunger, attacking someone else’s horse was even more shameful. Therefore, the Little White Dragon nodded, acknowledging it generously.
"I’m waiting for someone here, but that person hasn’t come, and I’m really too hungry. I couldn’t help attacking your horse, for which I’m truly sorry."
"It doesn’t matter," Chen Nuo said. "Since it wasn’t intentional, I won’t hold it against you. If you’re hungry, would you like to come with me for a meal?"
Upon hearing about a meal, the Little White Dragon immediately perked up, but he feared that by leaving now, he would miss the cultivator mentioned by the Bodhisattva.
He shook his head again. "I cannot leave. I’m waiting for that person, and if I go now and just happen to miss them, I’ll never have a chance to make a name for myself."
"What do you mean by ’a chance to make a name for yourself’?" Chen Nuo asked, pretending not to understand.
The Little White Dragon didn’t answer. This person seemed very kind, but, after all, he had only just met him. It wouldn’t be appropriate to tell him everything so soon.
He quickly made up an excuse. "It means that I made a mistake, and I’m waiting for someone to appear. That person needs my help, and once I assist them and their task is fulfilled, I will have redeemed myself."
"Oh, I see," said Chen Nuo, nodding with a meaningful look. "So you made a mistake with one thing, but you need to compensate with another, huh?"
The Little White Dragon paused, unsure how to respond, then shook his head. "I’m not very clear about it, anyway, the, uh, that person told me that I needed to do it this way."
"So it is," Chen Nuo said, nodding his head as he stroked his chin. "But to redeem past mistakes is indeed a serious matter. Do you really want to do it?"
The Little White Dragon felt confused. He didn’t know; he just remembered the hard life in prison was too bitter. When he burned the Bright Pearl bestowed by the Jade Emperor, he was too young to understand the grave consequences of his actions.
In fact, up to now, he felt that his biggest mistake wasn’t burning that pearl, because it was not really burnt by him.
The Bright Pearl shone with its own light, and he couldn’t take his eyes off it when the Jade Emperor first bestowed it. By the time he came to his senses, he was already strung up and being beaten.
It was Bodhisattva who intervened, which prevented him from being beaten to death on the spot, but he no longer knew what exactly had happened that day.
That event was so far in the past that he had forgotten many details. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦
"I don’t know if I want to make up for what I did, but if I don’t, I’ll never be able to raise my head again. I won’t just shame my father, but I’d also have to live in the Heavenly Prison forever," Ao Lie said. "So it’s not about wanting to or not; I must do it."
"Oh, is that so?" Chen Nuo nodded understandingly. "But seeing you so hungry, are you sure you don’t want to eat something?"
Ao Lie wasn’t that he didn’t want to eat; it was that he truly couldn’t eat yet.
"I can’t just leave this place. If I do and miss that cultivator, I really will regret it for the rest of my life," Ao Lie said.
