After a long night, Sanzang and the young monk, who had narrowly escaped death, packed their luggage and prepared to go to Guazhou.
Looking at the Zen staff inserted in the yellow sand in front of him, Sanzang was stunned.
Asked: "Junior Brother Wuliang, where did this Zen staff come from?"
The young monk thought for a while, and the author replied: "I had a dream last night. It was a magic weapon that the Bodhisattva gave to my senior brother for self-defense. It's a long road to Tianzhu, so it's just right for subduing demons."
Instead of saying that the old monk Huiwei gave it to him as his brother intended, the young monk threw the Zen staff to the Bodhisattva where it came from.
On Tianhuang Mountain, the old Taoist sneezed.
Looking into the void, he smiled and said, "Bodhisattva, these two brothers are really interesting. After all these twists and turns, it still happened to you."
The Bodhisattva's nonchalant reply came from the void: "Is this little monk right?"
"Bodhisattva, do you think Tripitaka is too weak? Even the evil wolves in the wilderness must be saved."
The old Taoist smiled and said: "I think that little monk still has the potential to become the Demon-Conquering King Kong."
"Nonsense, he is not weak but compassionate!"
The Bodhisattva sighed and said quietly: "Just like I advise you to eat less meat and kill less animals."
The old Taoist laughed and said: "I am not a Bodhisattva, and I am not an Arhat. I just eat something that deserves to be killed!"
"You are so greedy, no wonder you can't find a suitable apprentice."
The Bodhisattva sighed and said: "Think about it, even if you hold the Buddhist treasure, you can't seduce Li Xiuyuan, what else can you do?"
"Hey, the days are long, I don't believe it anymore."
The old Taoist looked at the vast lake and said with a smile: "I would like to see if he is really insufferable and does not eat the fireworks of the world."
Sanzang pulled up the black Zen staff from the ground and weighed it. He thought that this Bodhisattva has boundless compassion and always thinks of himself.
Immediately he clasped his hands and faced the void and said, "Disciple Tripitaka, thank you Bodhisattva for the treasure."
There was no echo from the Bodhisattva in the clouds, only a faint ray of Buddha's light fell on Sanzang's body and on the Zen staff.
The young monk had not tried the weight of the Zen staff last night, so he walked up to Sanzang and said, "Brother, let me try this treasure."
After saying that, he stretched out his hand and pinched the Zen staff, trying to do a trick.
With a clang, the Zen staff fell heavily to the ground, hitting the gravel and making a crisp cry.
The young monk exclaimed: "Senior brother, when did your strength become so fierce?"
Sanzang shook his head, picked up the Zen staff from the ground, and gently blew away the dust that fell on it.
Replied: "Junior brother, I'm sorry, but I'm not as strong as you?"
Although the little monk felt weird, he didn't want to try again, so he went to lead the horse.
He looked up at the sky and murmured: "Brother, Wuliang takes the first step. We will meet again in Guazhou." After that, he and Sanzang left slowly.
"See you again in Guazhou..."
Li Xiuyuan on the mountain watched quietly as the two men led the horses away. There was a pile of burning flames on the ground, but they were the bones of Ebony from last night.
He wanted to turn it into a handful of ashes and take them to Broken Leaf City.
He held a sheepskin bag in his hand, but inside it was Ebony's hard-earned coins, which he wanted to take to Ebony's wife and children.
The sky today is still hazy, but it is a rare good weather in the desert in June.
Thinking about what the young monk said, Li Xiuyuan smiled lightly and said, "Bodhisattva, isn't your Zen staff a treasure from the Buddhist kingdom?"
The black Zen staff weighs more than 100 kilograms. No wonder the young monk cannot lift it.
But Sanzang picked it up easily. It must be a treasure that has recognized its owner. Only in Sanzang's hands can it be of real use.
The Bodhisattva's lukewarm voice came to my ears: "I originally gave it to you, but it would be better for you to change hands and give it to someone else."
Li Xiuyuan shook his head: "I have a sword which is enough. It is best to give this staff to Sanzang."
"What is your relationship with Sanzang? Why did you give such a treasure to him without even looking at it?"
The Bodhisattva asked: "If I tell you that this is a rare magic weapon among all the heavens, will you regret it?"
Li Xiuyuan took a small wine jar, put the ashes of ebony on the ground into it, and replied: "Sanzang is just a friend I made on the snow-capped mountains."
"I'm not in Buddhism, so what's the use of this magical weapon? Even the sword I need, I can forge it myself without asking anyone."
He poured the contents of the sheepskin bag onto the ground and picked up a roll of customs clearance documents.
After unfolding it, he couldn't help but laugh: "From now on, I am Ebony from Broken Leaf City."
With the customs clearance document, it would be much more convenient for him to travel westward.
The old man in front of the lake was stunned and yelled: "Boy, you can also forge swords. How about you help me make a spiritual sword and I can give you the elixir?"
Li Xiuyuan, who was picking up a pile of gold, silver and copper coins and throwing them into the sheepskin bag, was stunned.
Looking at the void, he shook his head and said with a wry smile: "This junior has neither spiritual talent nor the mood to forge a sword. Senior, it is better to hire another expert."
The old Taoist looked at the Bodhisattva who was already sitting in front of him and shook his head, then asked in disbelief: "Boy, take out your spiritual sword and have a look. I don't believe it."
Li Xiuyuan couldn't help but frown when he heard this: "The juniors use the most common iron swords from this world. They are not worth looking at."
The old Taoist priest didn't believe it anymore and shouted: "Don't lie to me, show me quickly."
Li Xiuyuan shook his head, took a bunch of swords and put them in front of him, then gently touched them with the bamboo sword.
He replied quietly: "Actually, what I like to use the most is this bamboo sword that I sharpened myself."
Looking at the pile of broken copper and iron on the ground, the old Taoist priest finally believed it and was speechless for a moment.
The Bodhisattva sighed and couldn't help but ask: "Since you are a swordsmith, why don't you forge a spiritual sword for yourself? It is what we call the sword of destiny."
"The Bodhisattva is asking about my sword?"
Li Xiuyuan casually put away the iron sword on the ground and smiled: "I hid him under a cold pool on a snow mountain until one day."
"This...this, you are talking nonsense."
The old Taoist priest did not believe that a swordsman would hide his most beloved sword between heaven and earth. Who would not have such a spiritual sword with him at all times.
Are you afraid that you might be kidnapped by someone you care about accidentally?
Li Xiuyuan sighed and replied quietly: "In this world, my sword can't be unsheathed... I can only wrong him and rest in the world for the time being."
"Besides, my sword is used to kill people, not to show off to others. It doesn't make much difference whether he is by my side or not."
Gently, he slashed out the bamboo sword in his hand, and saw an invisible flaming sword energy slashing straight through the sky!
With a sound of "Boom!", the old Taoist priest felt a blazing flame flash past in front of him.
He was so frightened that he leaned back and yelled: "Boy, don't you want to repay kindness with hatred? Do you want to kill the old Taoist?"
The Bodhisattva looked at the old Taoist, smiled slightly, and waved his hand: "Continue your journey. The spring flowers and autumn moon of the Tang Dynasty are quite interesting. It makes me want to go and take a closer look."
After speaking, he looked at the old Taoist in front of him and complained: "Be careful, this child's master suddenly appears and slaps him."
The old Taoist felt a chill all over his body and replied faintly: "How can there be such a terrifying guy in the world, unless he is not from the Tang Dynasty, but..."
The old Taoist was too frightened to speak at the thought of this possibility.
After a while, he murmured: "Bodhisattva, could you be that old man's disciple?"
The Bodhisattva smiled slightly: "What do you think?"
…
Following Sanzang and the others from a distance, they finally entered Guazhou.
Li Xiuyuan, whose appearance had changed, followed him all the way to the inn where the young monk and Sanzang stayed.
It wasn't until he was sure that Sanzang was not in the inn that Li Xiuyuan knocked on the door where the young monk was.
"Wuliang, where did Sanzang go?" Li Xiuyuan asked quietly.
When entering the city, Li Xiuyuan lined up far behind a group of vendors and missed the opportunity to enter at the same time as the young monk.
When the young monk heard Li Xiuyuan's voice, he immediately came up and hugged his hand and shouted: "Master Li Chang, the governor of Guazhou, sent someone to invite senior Sanzang over..."
When Li Xiuyuan heard this, he sighed, frowned and said, "I didn't expect that Liangzhou's wanted order actually came to Guazhou. It seems that they don't want Sanzang to be imprisoned."
"What should I do, brother?"
The young monk said with a hint of anger: "Master Huiwei originally said that everything would turn around in Guazhou, but I didn't expect Master Li from Guazhou to find us so quickly."
At this point, the little monk was obviously angry.
"Don't worry, make a pot of tea first, I'm thirsty"
Li Xiuyuan said quietly: "Let's first see how Mr. Li, the governor of Guazhou, punishes Tripitaka. If it doesn't work, I will think of a way to take you out of the city."
To leave the city, Li Xiuyuan just waved his hand. He just didn't want to disrupt Tripitaka's practice on his journey to the west.
Just like his experience on Tianhuang Mountain, whether it was good or bad, it was a test on his way to practice, and it was best for Sanzang to face it alone.
He would not take action until the two of them were at a critical moment of life and death.
The young monk nodded, and while lighting a fire and boiling water, he asked, "Brother also lives in this inn, why are you wearing the clothes of the Western Regions?"
Li Xiuyuan thought for a while, looked at the young monk and said, "Before I meet Sanzang, you have to call me Brother Amu. Remember that I am a businessman from Suiye City in the Western Region."
When the young monk heard this, he smiled and said, "While Brother Sanzang hasn't come back, let's go shopping after drinking this cup of tea?"
Li Xiuyuan sighed slightly and said with a smile: "It's up to you, I'm going to buy some clothes and shoes from the Western Regions."
The young monk nodded with some understanding.
Now that his brother has come to him, he doesn't need to worry about the troubles he will encounter next.
He laughed and asked: "Brother, do you think Wuliang can break through another level?"
Li Xiuyuan thought about the elixir on his body, touched his head and smiled: "After leaving Yumen Pass, find a place with water. I will help you and Sanzang..."
The little monk laughed with satisfaction.
He said to himself: "When I left the temple, the master said that if I listened to my brother, I might be able to break through to the realm of golden elixir on the way to learn scriptures."
"I told the master that this is an impossible thing. The master said that everything is possible."
Having said this, the little monk took Li Xiuyuan's hand and laughed: "Brother, am I dreaming?"
Li Xiuyuan shook his head and said seriously: "You have to have dreams in life, so that you won't feel so miserable if you go on this long road. If you don't even think about it, why bother practicing?"
Seeing the confusion on the young monk's face, Li Xiuyuan continued: "Neither your master nor Brother Sanzang can accompany you to the end."
"So, from now on, you have to practice hard and think about what kind of life you want."
"Are you going to return to secular life after arriving in Tianzhu, marry a wife and have children and become a mortal? Or, like Tripitaka, practice your own Dharma and one day transcend this world and go to the Buddhist country?"
Li Xiuyuan said seriously: "No matter what choice you make, your master and I will support you."
When the little monk heard this, he was so frightened that he held his hand and exclaimed: "Brother, don't you want Wuliang?"
